Method and apparatus for processing a reward offer for a self-forming group

ABSTRACT

One embodiment of the present invention provides for: transmitting an offer for a credit card, the offer for the credit card comprising an offer for a first reward in exchange for each consumer of a group of consumers accepting a respective credit card, the group comprising a number of consumers that is greater than a predetermined number of consumers, the first reward comprising a first monetary amount, and the first reward to be donated to a beneficiary identified by the group; an offer for a second reward in exchange for the group transferring at least a predetermined aggregate amount of funds to the respective credit cards; and an offer for a third reward in exchange for: each consumer of the group of consumers making a respective minimum payment within a first predetermined period of time, and each consumer charging at least a predetermined minimum charge amount within a second predetermined period of time.

[0001] This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 10/121,243, filed Apr. 11, 2002; and also

[0002] this application claims priority to U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 60/297,976, filed Jun. 13, 2001.

[0003] Each of the above is herein incorporated by reference in itsentirety for all purposes.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0004] This application is related to the following co-pending U.S.Patent Applications:

[0005] (i) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/427,163, filed Oct. 26,1999; and

[0006] (ii) U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/422,415, filed Oct. 21,1999.

[0007] Each of the above is herein incorporated by reference in itsentirety for all purposes.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0008] The present invention relates to methods and apparatus foroffering and managing reward offers. More particularly, the presentinvention relates to methods and systems that facilitate generating,communicating and/or managing offers that provide a benefit in exchangefor a commitment by a group of consumers to an obligation.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0009] The lifetime value of a credit card holder to an issuing bankaverages between $600 and $1000. Issuing banks are therefore motivatedto acquire new card holders. In addition, increased usage of the issuingbank's credit card by a card holder can increase the profitability ofthe card holder's account. One tactic used by credit card issuers is tooffer individual card holders low introductory interest rates onbalances transferred from other credit cards.

[0010] Currently, there are approximately $700 billion in credit cardreceivables in the United States annually. Not all receivables arecollected, however. A charge-off is a credit card debt that a cardissuer is not able to collect and is therefore removed from the books.Credit card charge-off rates range from four to seven percent.Accordingly, charge-off amounts range from $28 billion to $49 billionannually.

[0011] A consumer may pay high prices for being statistically at risk,even when the particular consumer is relatively safe or is risk-averse.For example, a young credit consumer with little credit history may becharged a higher interest rate for a credit card or loan, even thoughthe young consumer is thrifty and has a support system of family orfriends available to assist him financially. In another example, a youngmale may be a careful driver, but is charged a high automobile insurancepremium anyway because he is a young male, a statistically risky groupto insure.

[0012] Tens of millions of credit card holders have an account which issponsored by an affinity group partner. Methods and systems forpromoting usage of credit card accounts based on affinity relationshipsare well known. Such methods and systems are generally designed toreward the affinity group sponsor based on account usage of credit cardholders belonging to the sponsor's affinity group. Examples of affinitygroup sponsors include trade groups, alumni associations, religiousorganizations, sports teams, and professional associations.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] Some embodiments of the present invention are described withreference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, like referencenumbers indicate identical or similar elements.

[0014]FIG. 1 comprises a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary processaccording to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0015]FIG. 2A is a block diagram of an embodiment of a system consistentwith the present invention;

[0016]FIG. 2B is a block diagram of another embodiment of a systemconsistent with the present invention;

[0017]FIG. 3 is a block diagram of one embodiment of a gaming device;

[0018]FIG. 4 is a block diagram of one embodiment of a controller;

[0019]FIG. 5 is a table illustrating an exemplary data structure of aconsumer database;

[0020]FIG. 6 is a table illustrating an exemplary data structure of agroup database;

[0021]FIG. 7 is a table illustrating an exemplary data structure of abeneficiary database;

[0022] FIGS. 8A-8B is a table illustrating an exemplary data structureof a group offers database;

[0023]FIG. 9 is a table illustrating an exemplary data structure of anaccepted offer tracking database; and

[0024] FIGS. 10A-10B comprise a flow diagram illustrating an exemplaryprocess according to an embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0025] 1. Introduction

[0026] In accordance with one or more embodiments of the presentinvention, a consumer receives an offer for a benefit to be provided inexchange for the fulfilling of an obligation by a group of consumers.Benefits provided to the group, to individuals in the group, or tobeneficiaries, thus depend upon the performance and behavior of othersin the group.

[0027] Such an offer may encourage the consumer to form his own group ofconsumers in order to take advantage of the offer. An example of abenefit is a monetary amount given to the group, monetary amounts givento individual group members, or a monetary amount donated to abeneficiary on behalf of the group. An example of an obligation thegroup needs to commit to in order to obtain a benefit is each groupmember filling out an application for a credit card from a credit cardissuer. Another example of an obligation is that a minimum amount becharged to group members' credit card accounts during a predefinedperiod. Another example of an obligation committed to by the group isthat at least one group member will satisfy an individual obligationcustomized for the member, such as a customized minimum charge amount.Individual members of the group may thus be given different obligationsto fulfill, with the benefit being provided if all of the group andindividual obligations are met. In some embodiments, the offer may befor a benefit to be provided in exchange for a commitment to anobligation by a group of consumers. The offer may be subsidized by asubsidizing entity (e.g., a credit card issuer in the above example).

[0028] Embodiments of the present invention provide numerous benefitsand advantages. Applicants have recognized that a need exists forsystems and methods that help merchants and other entities acquire newconsumers, retain current consumers, and encourage behavior by consumersthat is profitable to the merchant. One benefit of embodiments of theinvention is that a merchant may encourage the formation of a group ofconsumers that are likely to influence each other to engage behaviorthat is profitable for the merchant. For example, if the benefit to beprovided to the group may be forfeited, or the group may suffer apenalty, if an obligation is not met, the group members are likely toinfluence and encourage one another in order to satisfy the obligation.The merchant is thus able to promote the commitment of consumers toobligations tailored to reduce costs or increase income for themerchant.

[0029] Also, by encouraging consumers to seek out others to join agroup, the present invention also reduces the dependency on labor inacquiring and selling to new consumers. Further, once a group isidentified, a merchant is able to tailor obligations, penalties andpenalties based on group as well as individual characteristics, makingoffers more likely to be accepted by the group and more likely to beeffective in influencing the behavior of the group members.

[0030] In addition to providing benefits to merchants and otherentities, embodiments of the present invention provide benefits toconsumers. For example, consumers may be more willing to join in a groupreward program if they can determine who is in their group. Someembodiments of the present invention provide the benefit that a consumermay benefit not only from the behavior of other group members, but alsofrom the influence, motivation, encouragement, or discouragement bythose members of the consumer's own behavior.

[0031] Some embodiments may provide the opportunity for a consumer tobring account terms and conditions, such as insurance premiums orinsurance rates, in line with his actual risk profile, or may allow theconsumer to benefit from a lower risk assessment of the group of whichhe is a member. For example, a consumer may be classified by an insureras being in a statistically high risk pool of consumers. The riskassessment may or may not reflect the consumer's actual risk as anaccount holder. Some embodiments of the present invention allow theconsumer to associate himself with a group of others (some of whom maybe classified in a statistically lower risk pool). For example, a friendof a consumer might be willing to form a group with the consumer andagree to a goal of less than two speeding tickets in a year because thefriend knows that the consumer was once a passenger in a high-speedaccident and now never drives above the speed limit. Because of thefriend's willingness to commit to such an obligation, the consumer maylook like a better risk to an automobile insurer, even though theinsurer may not know of the consumer's experience. Further, if thegroup's ability to earn a reward is dependent on the behavior of theconsumer, the insurer may determine that this incentive of the othergroup members to keep the consumer in line mitigates some of the riskfactors that would otherwise make the consumer appear a poorer risk.

[0032] The present invention may be more filly understood with referenceto the following drawings. In the following description, reference ismade to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in whichis shown by way of illustration, specific embodiments in which theinvention may be practiced. These embodiments are described insufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice theinvention, and it is to be understood that other embodiments may beutilized and that structural, logical and electrical changes may be madewithout departing from the scope of the present invention. The followingdescription is, therefore, not to be taken in a limited sense but as anillustration of embodiments of the present invention.

[0033] For example, although many of the embodiments are illustratedherein as involving a credit card issuer, a credit card issuer is notnecessary for the implementation of the present invention. For example,an offer for a benefit for a group in exchange for commitment to and/orfulfillment of an obligation may be generated, presented, and/or managedby various types of merchants. The merchant may be, for example, anaccount issuer (e.g., a credit card issuer, a loan provider, or aninsurance provider), a retail merchant, a casino, or an entity thatfacilitates a group formation and/or offer management process on behalfof one or more other merchants.

[0034] It should be noted that in the description herein the term“consumer device” shall refer to any device, including a conventionalpersonal computer, a portable type of computer (e.g., a laptop computer,a palm-top computer, a hand-held computer, or a Personal DigitalAssistant (PDA)), point-of-sale (POS) terminal, kiosk, telephone,automatic teller machine (ATM), pager, slot machine (e.g., a slot reelmachine, a video lottery terminal, a video poker machine, a video bingomachine, a video keno machine, a video blackjack machine, etc.),facsimile machine, etc., or combination thereof, that facilitates one-or two-way communication with an entity providing an offer, an entitymanaging an offer, an entity monitoring consumer behavior, and/or anentity providing a benefit.

[0035] Although many of the embodiments are illustrated herein asinvolving a consumer device, a consumer device is not necessary for theimplementation of the present invention. For example, a credit cardissuer could present an offer for a group benefit in a magazine, and agroup could respond to the offer by mailing back an acceptance form tornfrom the magazine. The credit card issuer and the group could correspondentirely by mail and/or in person (e.g., one or more members could meetwith an employee of the credit card issuer).

[0036] Referring now to FIG. 1, a flow diagram illustrates an exemplaryprocess 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Theprocess 100 begins when an offer is presented (step 110). The offerdefines a benefit to be provided in exchange for the fulfilling of anobligation by a group of consumers. Benefits and obligations aredescribed in more detail below. An offer may be presented to one or moreconsumers, for example as an advertisement in the mail, in apublication, or in a periodical; via an email; at a Web site; or by asales representative. The consumers to whom the offer is presented mayor may not already be associated with a group of consumers. The offermay be presented to a group of consumers, such as to one or more membersof the group. The offer may be visually and/or audibly presented. Forexample, a visual presentation of the offer may be provided to aconsumer via a pop-up window at a Web page being viewed by the consumer.In other embodiments a visual presentation may be presented to aconsumer viewing a Web page via a means other than a pop-up window, suchas an advertisement displayed on the Web page.

[0037] If it is determined that a group of consumers has accepted theoffer (step 115) an indication of the group and its members is stored(step 120) and an indication of the group's commitment to fulfill theobligation is stored (step 125).

[0038] A group may signal an acceptance of an offer in various ways. Forexample, an individual consumer may visit a Web page indicated by theoffer and indicate a willingness to be associated with one or more otherconsumers (e.g., if the obligation is to form a group). In otherembodiments a group of consumers may signal acceptance of the offer byindicating their association with one another and fulfilling, orbeginning to fulfill, the obligation (e.g., if the obligation is foreach member of a group to apply for a credit card). In other embodimentsacceptance of the offer by a group may be signaled by one or moremembers of the group on behalf of the group (e.g., one member acceptsthe offer for the group and submits a list of the members of the group).If an acceptance of the offer is not received, in some embodiments asecond offer or the first offer in an altered form may be presented.

[0039] The group is monitored (step 130). If it is determined that thegroup has fulfilled the obligation (step 135) the benefit defined by theoffer is provided to the group (e.g., a donation is made to abeneficiary, or a monetary amount is given to the group and/or groupmembers) and an indication of the group's fulfillment of the obligationis stored (step 140). In some embodiments the benefit may be provided tothe group before the group actually fulfills the obligation. Forexample, the benefit may be provided when the group commits to theobligation.

[0040] An indication of the group's commitment may be stored in adatabase for use in determining whether the group has fulfilled theobligation in a satisfactory manner (e.g., within a specified period oftime) and/or whether a penalty should be assessed to the group if thegroup fails to fulfill the obligation. An indication of a group'scommitment to an offer may also be stored for future referenceregarding, for example, what types of commitments are accepted byconsumers or groups in general and/or by this particular group or theseparticular consumers.

[0041] Various other embodiments of the present invention are describedbelow. An example of an implementation of the present invention follows:

[0042] John, a member of the Stony Brook Church, received a credit cardoffer in the mail from AnyBank, USA. The offer had an interesting twist:if ten people formed a group and signed up for AnyBank's credit card andwere approved, then the group of account holders would immediately earn$200 to be donated to any charitable organization. Furthermore, if thegroup transferred $10,000, in aggregate, from existing credit cardbalances onto their AnyBank credit cards, then the group would earnanother $100 for their favorite charity.

[0043] John thought this offer would be an effective way to earn some ofthe money necessary to repair his church's damaged sidewalk. He talkedto some of his friends about the credit card offer. Some of the friendswere members of his church, and others were co-workers. John knew thatsome of his friends could be relied upon to meet individual and groupgoals. He also knew some of his friends were typically a little loosewith their spending, but he believed that with the amount of contact heand other group members would have with them, and with the closeness ofsome his relationships, it would be easy to discuss each other'ssituations and to dispense a little friendly encouragement wherenecessary to meet any obligations.

[0044] John convinced nine of his friends to join him in a group. Theyagreed on a group name (“The Stony Brooks”) and a password(“sidewalk2002”). John sent his friends a link to a Web site hosted byAnyBank, so that they could apply for the AnyBank credit card. John andthe other members of the group applied for the card using an applicationform on the Web site.

[0045] John used his personal computer and an Internet connection tovisit the Web site. At the Web site, John was prompted to providepersonal information and financial information, such as age, address,and annual income, in an on-line form. John was also prompted toindicate any affiliation with a group. He entered his group's name andpassword at the Web site.

[0046] AnyBank ultimately approved each of the applications and senteach of the applicants a new credit card. Each group member had his owncredit limit, and credit limits ranged from $1000 to $5000. AnyBankmonitored activity related to the group. AnyBank determined that sinceten people identifying themselves as members of The Stony Brooks grouphad been approved for AnyBank credit cards, the group had earned the$200 reward. As the designated group leader, John received an emailmessage from AnyBank, asking what he would like to do with the $200charitable donation. John entered the address of Stony Brook Church intothe AnyBank Web site and requested that a check in the donated amount besent to Stony Brook Church along with a message that the check was topay for the sidewalk. AnyBank sent a check to Stony Brook Church asrequested.

[0047] AnyBank continued to monitor activity related to the group. Ninemonths later, AnyBank determined that the group, in aggregate, hadsatisfied the $10,000 balance transfer obligation (some members had nottransferred any balance amount). Accordingly, AnyBank issued anothercheck for $100 to Stony Brook Church. By encouraging one another to meetthe group's obligations, The Stony Brooks group was provided with thereward of a $300 donation to Stony Brook Church.

[0048] 2. Description of the System

[0049] Referring now to FIG. 2A, a system 200 according to an embodimentof the present invention includes a controller 210 that is incommunication with (wired and/or wirelessly) one or more consumerdevices 220 and one or more optional beneficiaries 230 via a networksuch as an intranet, the Internet, via another network protocol, or viaother means for communication as would be understood by those ofordinary skill in the art. Although two consumer devices 220 aredepicted in FIG. 2A, any number of consumer devices may be incommunication with the controller 210. Although two beneficiaries 230are depicted in FIG. 2A, any number of beneficiaries may be incommunication with the controller 210. The controller 210, consumerdevices 220 and/or beneficiaries 230 may comprise one or more computingdevices, such as those based on the INTEL® PENTIUM® processor.

[0050] In operation, the controller 210 may function under the controlof a merchant or other entity. For example, the controller 210 may be aWeb server operated by or on behalf of a credit card issuing bank. Insome embodiments, a merchant or other entity may control the consumerdevices 220. For example, the consumer devices 220 may be POS terminalsoperated by and located at a retail store. In some embodiments, some orall of the functions described herein as being performed by thecontroller 210 may be performed by any or all of the consumer devices220. Similarly, in some embodiments of the present invention, some orall of the functions described herein as being performed by one or moreof the consumer devices 220 may be performed by controller 210.

[0051] Referring now to FIG. 2B, a system 200 according to anotherembodiment of the present invention includes a primary controller 260that is in communication with (wired and/or wirelessly) a secondarycontroller 270 and a secondary controller 280. Although two secondarycontrollers are illustrated in FIG. 2B it should be understood that anynumber of secondary controllers may be used. Secondary controller 270 isin communication with consumer devices 275. Secondary controller 280 isin communication with consumer devices 285. It should be understood thatsecondary controller 270 and secondary controller 280 may be incommunication with any number of consumer devices. Each of the devicesof FIG. 2B are in communication with one another via a network such asan intranet, the Internet, via another network protocol, or via othermeans for communication as would be understood by those of ordinaryskill in the art.

[0052] In some embodiments, some or all of the functions describedherein as being performed by the primary controller 260 may be performedby either or both of the secondary controllers 270 and 280. Similarly,in some embodiments of the present invention, some or all of thefunctions described herein as being performed by one or more of thesecondary controllers 270 and 280 may be performed by the primarycontroller 260.

[0053] A difference between the two alternative embodiments depicted inFIGS. 2A and 2B is that the embodiment of FIG. 2B includes the primarycontroller 260 being in communication with secondary controller 270 andsecondary controller 280 rather than being in communication with any ofthe consumer devices. Of course in other embodiments the primarycontroller may be in communication with any or all of the consumerdevices 275 and 285 in addition to being in communication with any orall of secondary controllers 270 and 280. Another difference between thetwo alternative embodiments depicted in FIGS. 2A and 2B is that theembodiment of FIG. 2B does not depict the primary controller 260 asbeing in communication with any of the optional beneficiaries 230. Ofcourse in other embodiments the primary controller may be incommunication with any or all of the optional beneficiaries 230. Primarycontroller 260 may be operable by an entity both distinct and physicallyremote from an entity operating the secondary controller 270 and/or thesecondary controller 280.

[0054] The primary controller 260 may perform various methods of thepresent invention by sending signals to the secondary controller 270 andsecondary controller 280 to be relayed to the consumer devices 275 andthe consumer devices 285, respectively. For example, a merchant or asubsidizing entity may operate a primary controller 260 thatcommunicates with a Web server (functioning as a secondary controller270 and/or secondary controller 280) to provide a consumer viewing a Website using a personal computer (functioning as any of the consumerdevices 275 and/or consumer devices 285) an offer for one or morebenefits in exchange for fulfillment of an obligation by a group of twoor more consumers.

[0055] In some embodiments, the primary controller 260 may performvarious methods of the present invention by receiving signals from thesecondary controller 270 and/or secondary controller 280. For example, amerchant or a subsidizing entity may operate a server (functioning as asecondary controller 270 and/or secondary controller 280) to receiveand/or store information related to a consumer, such as informationabout a transaction between the merchant and the consumer and/orinformation about an account the consumer has with the merchant, and tosend signals indicating any such information to a group rewardcontroller (functioning as a primary controller 260). Alternatively, amerchant may operate a server (functioning as a secondary controller 270and/or secondary controller 280) to relay such information from theconsumer devices 276 and/or the consumer devices 285 to the primarycontroller 260 without storing the information. Information from one ormore merchants may be used by the group reward controller, for example,in determining whether an obligation of a consumer or group of consumershas been fulfilled, such as by meeting certain purchase requirements.

[0056] In one embodiment of the system illustrated in FIG. 2A, thefunctions of the primary controller 260 are consolidated into thecontroller 210. In some embodiments, the secondary controller 270 andsecondary controller 280 of FIG. 2B may each be controlled by differentmerchants or by different affiliates (e.g., franchisees, subsidiaries)of the same merchant.

[0057] Referring now to both FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B, communication with thecontroller 210, the primary controller 260, and/or either of thesecondary controllers 270 and 280 may be direct or indirect. Forexample, communication (wired and/or wireless) may be via an intranet;the Internet through a Web site maintained on a remote server bycontroller 210, the primary controller 260, and/or either of thesecondary controllers 270 and 280; or an on-line data network, includingcommercial on-line service providers, bulletin board systems and thelike. In some embodiments, the consumer devices 220 and thebeneficiaries 230 may communicate with controller 210 (and the consumerdevices 275 and 285 may communicate with secondary controller 270 and280, respectively) over radio frequency (“RF”), infrared (“IR”), cableTV, satellite links and the like, including combinations thereof.

[0058] Those skilled in the art will understand that devices incommunication with each other need not be continually transmitting toeach other. On the contrary, such devices need only transmit to eachother as necessary, and may actually refrain from exchanging data mostof the time. For example, a device in communication with another devicevia the Internet may not transmit data to the other device for weeks ata time.

[0059] The controller 210, the primary controller 260, and/or either ofthe secondary controllers 270 and 280 may function as a “Web server”that generates Web pages (documents on the Web that typically include anHTML file and associated graphics and script files). Such Web pages maybe accessed via the Web and allow communication with the controller 210,the primary controller 260, and/or either of the secondary controllers270 and 280 in a manner known in the art. The controller 210, theprimary controller 260, and/or either of the secondary controllers 270and 280 may function in such a capacity, for example, in embodimentswherein a merchant comprises an online store or catalog. Those of skillin the art will understand that there are a variety of well-known waysfor creating and operating Web pages, and accordingly a detaileddescription of such known processes is omitted here.

[0060] Any or all of the controller 210, the optional beneficiaries 230,the primary controller 260, the secondary controllers 270 and 280 andthe consumer devices 220, 275, and 285 may comprise, e.g., aconventional personal computer, a portable type of computer, such as alaptop computer, a palm-top computer, a hand-held computer, or aPersonal Digital Assistant (PDA), or combinations thereof.

[0061] In operation, the consumer devices 220, 275 and 285 may exchangeinformation about a consumer or group of consumers with the controller210, the primary controller 260, and/or the secondary controllers 270and 280. The consumer devices 220, 275, and 285 may also exchangeinformation about an offer provided to a consumer or group, or acceptedby a consumer or group, with the controller 210, primary controller 260,and/or secondary controllers 270 and 280. The controller 210, theprimary controller 260, and/or the secondary controllers 270 and 280may, for example, provide information about an offer such as obligationinformation, penalty information, benefit information and/or otherinformation to the consumer devices 220, 275 and 285 and/or thebeneficiaries 230. The consumer devices 220, 275, and 285 may, forexample, provide acceptance information, obligation information, penaltyinformation, benefit information, information related to a consumer'saccount and/or information related to a transaction to the controller210, the primary controller 260, and/or the secondary controllers 270and 280. The secondary controllers 270 and 280 may provide informationabout accepted offers and/or information related to a consumer or to agroup of consumers to the primary controller 260 and also may providecontrol signals to the consumer devices 220, 275, and 285 directing themto provide benefits or to apply penalties to groups. The secondarycontrollers 270 and 280 may also provide control signals to the consumerdevices 220, 275, and 285 directing them to provide benefits or to applypenalties to groups.

[0062] Referring now to FIG. 3, depicted therein is a block diagramillustrating details of an example of consumer device 300. Consumerdevice 300 may be any and all of consumer devices 220, 275 and 285. Aconsumer device may comprise any device facilitating one- or two-waycommunication with an entity providing an offer, an entity managing anoffer, an entity monitoring consumer behavior, and/or an entityproviding a benefit. Consumer devices may or may not be owned by amerchant and/or may or may not be located within a merchantestablishment (e.g., a merchant corporate headquarters, a retail store).For example, in an embodiment wherein a merchant comprises an onlinestore or catalog, consumer device 300 may comprise a personal computeror other computing device operable to run a program that simulates thefunctions of the components of a consumer device as described herein.

[0063] For illustrative purposes, FIG. 3 depicts an example of aconsumer device that comprises a conventional personal computer. Aswould be understood by one skilled in the art, if other consumer devicesare used additional or substitute components may be included in consumerdevice 300. The consumer device 300 includes known hardware components,such as a processor 305, which may be one or more processors such as anINTEL® PENTIUM® processor. Processor 305 is shown as being incommunication with each of (i) a data storage device 310, (ii) an outputdevice 315, (iii) a communications port 320, and (v) an input device330. Processor 305 can be in communication with the data storage device310, output device 315, communications port 320, random number generator325 and input device 330, for example, by means of a shared data bus orby dedicated connections, as is well known in the art. Consumer device300 may comprise additional conventional components such as, forexample, a power supply.

[0064] The processor 305 may include or be coupled to one or more clocksor timers (not pictured), which may be useful for determininginformation relating to, for example, whether an obligation is fulfilledwithin a specified time. The processor 305 may also include or be incommunication with one or more communication ports 320 through which theprocessor 305 communicates with, for example, controller 210, primarycontroller 260, and/or secondary controllers 270 and 280. The processor305 is also in communication with a data storage device 310. The datastorage device 310 includes an appropriate combination of magnetic,optical and/or semiconductor memory, and may include, for example,additional processors, communication ports, Random Access Memory(“RAM”), Read-Only Memory (“ROM”), a compact disc and/or a hard disk.The processor 305 and the storage device 310 may each be, for example:(i) located entirely within a single computer or other computing device;or (ii) connected to each other by a remote communication medium, suchas a serial port cable, a LAN, a telephone line, radio frequencytransceiver, a fiber optic connection or the like. In some embodimentsfor example, the consumer device 300 may comprise one or more computers(or processors 305) that are connected to a remote server computeroperative to maintain databases, where the data storage device 310 iscomprised of the combination of the remote server computer and theassociated databases.

[0065] The data storage device 310 stores a program 335 for controllingthe processor 305. The processor 305 performs instructions of theprogram 335, and thereby operates in accordance with the presentinvention, and particularly in accordance with the methods described indetail herein. The present invention can be embodied as a computerprogram developed using an object oriented language that allows themodeling of complex systems with modular objects to create abstractionsthat are representative of real world, physical objects and theirinterrelationships. However, it would be understood by one of ordinaryskill in the art that the invention as described herein can beimplemented in many different ways using a wide range of programmingtechniques as well as general purpose hardware systems or dedicatedcontrollers. The program 335 may be stored in a compressed, uncompiledand/or encrypted format. The program 335 furthermore may include programelements that may be generally useful, such as an operating system, aWeb browser, a database management system and “device drivers” forallowing the processor 305 to interface with computer peripheraldevices. Appropriate general purpose program elements are known to thoseskilled in the art, and need not be described in detail herein.

[0066] According to some embodiments of the present invention, theinstructions of the program 335 may be read into a main memory of theprocessor 305 from another computer-readable medium, such from a ROM toa RAM. Execution of sequences of the instructions in the program 335causes processor 305 to perform the process steps described herein. Inalternative embodiments, hard-wired circuitry or integrated circuits maybe used in place of, or in combination with, software instructions forimplementation of the processes of the present invention. Thus,embodiments of the present invention are not limited to any specificcombination of hardware, firmware, and/or software.

[0067] Communications port 320 may be any input/output port commonlyused for computer communications, such as a modem or other data transferdevice. The communications port 320 enables the consumer device 300 tocommunicate with another device such as, for example, controller 210. Itis also contemplated that the consumer device 300 may be incommunication with other devices via the communications port 320. Amongother functions, the communications port 320, under the control of theprocessor 305, may receive and/or transmit data relevant to providing anoffer to a consumer that is interacting with the consumer device 300.The communications port 320 may also receive and/or transmit data, suchas information related to the consumer, information relevant to anoffer, information related to a transaction by the consumer, informationrelated to an account of the consumer, and/or information related to agroup in which the consumer is a member, received through the inputdevice 330, described below. The communications port 320 may includemultiple communication channels for simultaneous connections with aplurality of external devices.

[0068] The output device 315 may comprise any device capable ofproviding information and/or a benefit to a consumer (it should be notedthat in some embodiments of the present invention a benefit may compriseinformation). An output device may communicate with or be part ofanother device (e.g. a benefit dispensing device, a touch screen displaythat may also comprise input device 330). Possible output devicesinclude: a cathode ray tube (CRT) monitor, liquid crystal display (LCD)screen, light emitting diode (LED) screen, a printer, an audio speaker,an infra-red transmitter, and a radio transmitter. In embodimentswherein the output device 315 also functions as a benefit dispensingdevice, the output device 315 may comprise any device capable ofproviding a benefit such as: dispensing money and/or casino tokens;dispensing a product of value (e.g., a ticket, a coupon); printing aconfirmation of a benefit (e.g.,. a receipt confirming reservations at arestaurant); and/or printing or otherwise outputting coupons and/orcashless gaming receipts. In some embodiments output device 315 maycomprise a printing device capable of printing a written agreementdescribing an offer that a consumer was presented with and/or wasaccepted. It should be noted that although output device 315 is depictedas a component of consumer device 300, in some embodiments output device315 may comprise an output device that is external to the consumerdevice 300 (e.g., located near consumer device 300).

[0069] The input device 330 may include a keyboard, a numeric keypad, apointer device (e.g., a mouse), a microphone, a touch screen displaywith an associated consumer interface, and/or a card reader for readinginput from credit cards and/or tracking cards (e.g., a casino consumertracking card). One such card reader is the OMNI 490 by VERIFONE, INC.

[0070] Referring now to FIG. 4, depicted therein is a block diagramillustrating details of an example of a controller 400. Controller 400may be controller 210 of FIG. 2A, and/or the primary controller 260 andthe secondary controllers 270 and 280 of FIG. 2B. The controller 400 isoperative to manage the system and execute the methods of the presentinvention. The controller 400 may be implemented as one or more systemcontrollers, one or more dedicated hardware circuits, one or moreappropriately programmed general purpose computers, or any other similarelectronic, mechanical, electromechanical, and/or human operated device.

[0071] The controller 400 may include a processor 405, such as one ormore INTEL® PENTIUM® processors. The processor 405 may include or becoupled to one or more clocks or timers (not pictured), which may beuseful for determining information relating to, for example, whether anobligation is fulfilled within a specified time. The processor 405 mayalso include or be in communication with and one or more communicationports 410 through which the processor 405 communicates with otherdevices such as the consumer devices 220, 275, and 285. The processor405 is also in communication with a data storage device 415. The datastorage device 415 includes an appropriate combination of magnetic,optical and/or semiconductor memory, and may include, for example,additional processors, communication ports, Random Access Memory(“RAM”), Read-Only Memory (“ROM”), a compact disc and/or a hard disk.The processor 405 and the storage device 415 may each be, for example:(i) located entirely within a single computer or other computing device;or (ii) connected to each other by a remote communication medium, suchas a serial port cable, a LAN, a telephone line, radio frequencytransceiver, a fiber optic connection or the like. In some embodimentsfor example, the controller 400 may comprise one or more computers (orprocessors 405) that are connected to a remote server computer operativeto maintain databases, where the data storage device 415 is comprised ofthe combination of the remote server computer and the associateddatabases.

[0072] The data storage device 415 stores a program 420 for controllingthe processor 405. The processor 405 performs instructions of theprogram 420, and thereby operates in accordance with the presentinvention, and particularly in accordance with the methods described indetail herein. The present invention can be embodied as a computerprogram developed using an object oriented language that allows themodeling of complex systems with modular objects to create abstractionsthat are representative of real world, physical objects and theirinterrelationships. However, it would be understood by one of ordinaryskill in the art that the invention as described herein can beimplemented in many different ways using a wide range of programmingtechniques as well as general purpose hardware systems or dedicatedcontrollers. The program 420 may be stored in a compressed, uncompiledand/or encrypted format. The program 420 furthermore may include programelements that may be generally useful, such as an operating system, adatabase management system and “device drivers” for allowing theprocessor 405 to interface with computer peripheral devices. Appropriategeneral purpose program elements are known to those skilled in the art,and need not be described in detail herein.

[0073] Further, the program 420 is operative to execute a number ofinvention-specific modules or subroutines including, but not limited to:one or more routines to generate an offer to be provided to a consumeror a group; one or more routines to receive information about an offerto be provided to a consumer or a group; one or more routines toidentify a consumer or group as a potential candidate to be providedwith an offer; one or more routines to provide an offer or cause anoffer to be provided to a consumer or a group; one or more routines toreceive information about a consumer; one or more routines to receiveinformation about a group; one or more routines to receive informationabout a beneficiary; one or more routines to associate a consumer with agroup of consumers; one or more routines to determine if a consumer or agroup accepts an offer; one or more routines to signal consumer devices220, 275 and/or 285 to output a benefit to a consumer or to a group; oneor more routines to verify a consumer's fulfillment of an obligationthat was the subject of an offer which the consumer or a group accepted;one or more routines to verify a group's fulfillment of an obligationthat was the subject of an offer which the group accepted; one or moreroutines to impose a consequence upon a consumer or a group that failsto fulfill an obligation; and one or more routines to control databasesor software objects that track information regarding, for example,consumers, subsidizing entities, groups of consumers, consumer devices220, 275 and 285, offers, and fulfillment of obligations. Examples ofthese routines and their operation are described in detail below inconjunction with the flow diagrams.

[0074] According to some embodiments of the present invention, theinstructions of the program 420 may be read into a main memory of theprocessor 405 from another computer-readable medium, such from a ROM toa RAM. Execution of sequences of the instructions in the program 420causes processor 405 to perform the process steps described herein. Inalternative embodiments, hard-wired circuitry or integrated circuits maybe used in place of, or in combination with, software instructions forimplementation of the processes of the present invention. Thus,embodiments of the present invention are not limited to any specificcombination of hardware, firmware, and/or software.

[0075] In addition to the program 420, the storage device 415 is alsooperative to store (i) a consumer database 425, (ii) a group database427, (iii) a beneficiary database 430, (iv) a group offers database 435,(v) an accepted offer tracking database 450, and (vi) a consumertransaction database 455. The databases 425, 427, 430, 435, 450, and 455are described in detail below and example structures are depicted withsample entries in the accompanying figures. As will be understood bythose skilled in the art, the schematic illustrations and accompanyingdescriptions of the sample databases presented herein are exemplaryarrangements for stored representations of information. Any number ofother arrangements may be employed besides those suggested by the tablesshown. For example, even though six separate databases are illustrated,the invention could be practiced effectively using one, two, three,four, five, seven, or more functionally equivalent databases. Similarly,the illustrated entries of the databases represent exemplary informationonly; those skilled in the art will understand that the number andcontent of the entries can be different from those illustrated herein.Further, despite the depiction of the databases as tables, an objectbased model could be used to store and manipulate the data types of thepresent invention and likewise, object methods or behaviors can be usedto implement the processes of the present invention. These processes aredescribed below in detail with respect to the flow diagrams.

[0076] 3. Description of Databases

[0077] 3.1. Consumer Database

[0078] Referring to FIG. 5, a table represents the consumer database 425that may be stored at the controller 210, primary controller 260 or oneor more of the secondary controllers 270 and 280 according to someembodiments of the present invention. According to another embodiment,some or all of the information in the consumer database 425 may bestored at one or more of the consumer devices 220, 275, and 285 instead.The table includes entries identifying consumers. The table definesfields 502, 504, 505, 506, 512, 514, 516, and 518 for each of theentries. The fields specify: a consumer identifier 502; a consumer name504; a consumer address 505; an account identifier 506; demographicinformation 512; other information 514; consumer obligation 516; and adate 518.

[0079] The information in the consumer database 425 may be created andupdated, for example, based on information received from a consumer. Forexample, the information may be created when a consumer registers with acredit card issuer and receives a credit card having a credit cardaccount identifier. The information may be subsequently updated when aconsumer requests to update the information (e.g., when a consumerindicates a desire to change his address of record) or when additionalinformation is obtained about the consumer via the credit card issuer'sinteractions with the consumer (e.g., the shopping habits of theconsumer may be updated over time).

[0080] The consumer identifier 502 may be, for example, an alphanumericcode associated with a consumer who may operate a consumer device. Theconsumer identifier 502 may be generated or selected, for example, bythe controller 210 or by the consumer (e.g., when a consumer firstregisters with a credit card issuer via a Web site).

[0081] For each consumer, the consumer database 425 may also store theconsumer's name 504 and address (e.g., for use in presenting offers tothe consumer). The consumer address 505 stores an indication of how tocontact the consumer. Address information may comprise, e.g., atelephone number, electronic mail (“e-mail”) address, or postal address.The consumer may be contacted in a variety of circumstances inaccordance with various embodiments of the present invention, asdiscussed further below.

[0082] The consumer database 425 also stores an account identifier 506(e.g., a credit card account number, a debit card account number, achecking account number, or an insurance policy number) associated withthe consumer. The account identifier 506 may be used, for example, tocredit a payment to the consumer (e.g., wherein a benefit comprises amonetary amount) and/or to apply a penalty to a consumer if he or theconsumer's group does not satisfy an obligation defined by an offeraccepted by the consumer or the consumer's group. The account identifier506 may also be used to charge a monetary amount to the account whereinthe monetary amount is based on a value of a benefit provided, in anembodiment where, for example, a group is provided a benefit beforesatisfying an obligation and subsequently does not satisfy theobligation.

[0083] The demographic information 512 and other information 514 maystore information that is useful for targeting offers to a consumer of aconsumer device. In one embodiment a merchant may specify one or moreconsumer-related prerequisites to be satisfied before a particular offermay be provided to a consumer or to a group. For example, a merchant mayspecify that the offer be provided only to female consumers, toconsumers within a certain age group, or consumers having certaininterests or hobbies. In this example, when determining whether toprovide a consumer at a consumer device with the merchant's offer, thedemographic information field 512 and/or other information field 514 maybe accessed, based on the consumer identifier of the consumer at theconsumer device, to determine whether the demographic information andthe other information satisfies the merchant's prerequisites. Of coursea merchant may specify other consumer-related prerequisites in additionto or instead of demographic information. Such consumer-relatedprerequisites are discussed in detail below. Further, an entity otherthan a merchant may specify consumer-related prerequisites that are tobe satisfied before an offer is provided to a consumer. For example, inan embodiment where the controller is not the merchant the controllermay specify consumer-related prerequisites in addition to or instead ofany specified by the merchant.

[0084] It should be understood that although a consumer identifier andinformation related to each registered consumer is described in detailwith reference to providing offers to consumers, a consumer need not beregistered in order to receive an offer in accordance with the presentinvention. For example, an offer may be provided to a consumerregardless of any information about the consumer that is known (e.g.,the offer may not be targeted but may instead be provided to anyconsumer). In some embodiments an offer may be provided based on anevent or condition at a consumer device. For example, an offer may beprovided to a consumer who clicks on a particular hyperlink on a Website, or who makes a particular purchase at a POS terminal. In suchembodiments no information about the consumer need be stored orregistered ahead of time. The information necessary for determiningwhether to provide an offer may simply be accumulated by, e.g.,controller 210 and/or consumer devices 220. In yet other embodimentsinformation about a consumer may be gathered (e.g., via a surveypresented to the consumer at a Web site) while the consumer is using theconsumer device 220. In other words, in some embodiments of the presentinvention no pre-registration of a consumer or consumer-relatedinformation is necessary or preferred.

[0085] The consumer obligation 516 stores an indication of an obligationthe consumer individually must commit to and/or fulfill in order toobtain the corresponding benefit defined by an offer to the consumer'sgroup. It should be noted that an offer may define more than oneobligation for the consumer. In embodiments where an offer defines aplurality of individual obligations for the consumer, the consumer mayor may not be required to perform each of the obligations defined by theoffer in order for the group to obtain the corresponding benefit. Forexample, the consumer may be allowed to choose a subset of theobligations defined by the offer (e.g., one of the plurality ofobligations) and the group may be provided with the correspondingbenefit in exchange for the consumer committing to and/or fulfilling thesubset of obligations. An obligation defined by an offer may or may notbe defined by the merchant associated with the offer or by the sameentity that defined the corresponding benefit. For example, a merchantother than a credit card issuer, such as a retail store owner, mayprovide the offer or define a benefit while the credit card issuer mayspecify one or more of the obligations defined by the offer. In someembodiments the group or one or more members of the group may be allowedto define an individual obligation for the consumer. For example, eachmember of the group may indicate an obligation preference on an onlineform at a Web site (functioning as a secondary controller 270 and/or280) hosted by an entity acting as the primary controller 260 (FIG. 2B),such as by casting a vote for one or more of a set of obligationsdefined by the offer, or writing in a preferred obligation.Alternatively, the members may agree to an obligation and the groupleader then may indicate a preference for the obligation to an entityoperating the system, on behalf of the consumer and/or the group.

[0086] Examples of obligations include, but are not limited to: (i)purchasing a product or service (e.g., signing up for a magazinesubscription, switching to a new service provider, or buying $20 worthof books from AMAZON.COM™); (ii) using a product or service (e.g.applying for a new credit card, using a new long distance provider for atrial period, printing at least 100 pages per week from a specifiedbrand of printer, receiving 3 free new issues of a magazine, testdriving a car); (iii) providing a product or service (e.g., providingadvice via a Web site, donating to a specified cause or organization);(iv) selling a product or service (e.g., selling a product on EBAY™,providing advice for a fee); (v) providing information (e.g., answeringsurvey questions or giving permission to access personal informationsuch as medical files or credit report); (vi) viewing information (e.g.,watching an advertisement or other video clip, listening to a messagethat is prerecorded or from a live person); (vii) convincing anotherperson to perform one or more activities (e.g., convincing a friend toapply for a new credit card, test drive a car, view information, or buya product); and (viii) visiting a retailer (e.g., visiting a Web site ofan online retailer or visiting a store location of a brick-and-mortarretailer).

[0087] Examples of obligations imposed by a credit card issuer mayinclude, but are not limited to: (i) transferring a minimum amount offunds to a new credit card; (ii) new charges in excess of predeterminedminimum; (iii) increasing the amount charged at a predetermined rate orby a predetermined percentage; (iv) getting a current balance to exceeda threshold; (v) getting a current balance to be less than a threshold;(vi) charging more than a predetermined minimum amount at a particularmerchant or group of merchants; (vii) increasing the membership of thegroup by a predetermined number of members; (viii) retaining apredetermined number of members in the group; and (ix) paying off acertain amount or percentage of prior balances.

[0088] As discussed further below, obligations may apply in aggregate tothe group as a whole, may apply on a per-member basis, or somecombination thereof.

[0089] In some embodiments obligations may be time-based. For example,members may have to fulfill an obligation within a certain time period,or may have to fulfill an obligation periodically. In some embodiments,obligations may need only be met a certain percentage of time. Forexample, an obligation may be that in any given time period, only 80% ofthe group members have balances exceeding a certain threshold.

[0090] Examples of gambling-related obligations include, but are notlimited to: (i) playing a specified game or game device for apredetermined period of time or for a predetermined number of rounds;(ii) placing a specified wager amount for a specified period of time orfor a predetermined number of rounds; and (iii) playing a game or gamedevice until an occurrence of a specified event (e.g., obtaining aspecified outcome, a specified payout amount, or winning a specifiedtotal amount of payout amounts).

[0091] An obligation may specify further conditions such as arequirement to begin an activity defined by the obligation within aspecified period of time, before a specified time or after a specifiedtime. Another example of a further condition is a requirement to finishan activity defined by the obligation within a specified period of timeor by a specified time. Further, an obligation may require a commitmentfrom a person different from the consumer accepting the offer (e.g., acommitment from an associated person that is to be provided the benefitdefined by the offer) or an activity to be performed by a persondifferent from the consumer accepting the offer (e.g., the obligationmay be to convince a friend or family member of the consumer to switchservice providers or test a product).

[0092] An obligation may be defined at the time the corresponding offeris entered into the table 425 or at another time. For example, asdiscussed below, an obligation may be defined on an ad hoc basis basedon revenue management principles. In one example, a casino determinesthat not enough consumers are playing a particular type of slot machine.The casino defines the playing of the slot machine for a specifiedperiod of time as an obligation defined by an offer until the number ofconsumers playing the particular type of slot machine reaches anacceptable number. In another example, a merchant that is a carmanufacturer may define an obligation as a test drive of a model A ofthe manufacturer's cars. However, as the manufacturer determines thatthe sales of model A are at an acceptable level but the sales level ofmodel B is below an acceptable level the manufacturer may define theobligation to be a test drive of model B rather than model A. Anobligation may be defined based on other information such asconsumer-related information. For example, in the above example theparticular model to be test-driven as defined by the obligation may bedetermined based on the income level of the consumer to whom the offeris to be provided.

[0093] It should be understood that an obligation defined by an offermay or may not be performed, or be capable of being performed, at aconsumer device. For example, in some embodiments an obligationcomprises an activity that cannot be performed at a personal computer(e.g., test driving a car). In other embodiments an obligation may beperformed at a consumer device (e.g., answering survey questions orapplying for a credit card). In the embodiments where an obligation maybe performed at a consumer device, the consumer may be allowed to deferthe performance of the activity. For example, a consumer may be given anoption to answer survey questions at a consumer device or on a Web siteat a later time. In the embodiments where the consumer performs anobligation at a consumer device the consumer may be presented with themeans of performing the obligation once the consumer accepts the offer(e.g., the consumer may be presented with a survey or credit cardapplication on a screen of the consumer device). As discussed above, thebenefit corresponding to an obligation may be provided, e.g., at thetime of the consumer's acceptance of the offer defining the obligationand benefit or once the consumer satisfies the obligation.

[0094] In some embodiments the group may be provided with the benefitbefore the consumer satisfies the obligation. In such an embodiment thegroup may be informed of a penalty, if any, that may be imposed on thegroup if the consumer subsequently fails to satisfy the individualobligation. For example, the group may be required to return the benefitor provide a value equivalent to the benefit if the consumer does notsatisfy the obligation. In embodiments where the group is not providedthe benefit until the consumer satisfies the obligation members of thegroup may be informed of the progress of the consumer towards satisfyingthe obligation. For example, assuming the obligation comprises making aminimum amount of credit card charges to a credit card account in athree-month period, the group may be updated every month as to theconsumer's progress towards satisfying the obligation (e.g., via e-mailmessages transmitted to the group). In one embodiment the consumer andthe group may be placed in contact (e.g., via a telephone or videoconnection) while the consumer is attempting to satisfy the obligationsuch that the group may encourage the consumer to satisfy theobligation. In another example, assuming the obligation comprises acommitment to visit a retailer or test a product before a predefineddate, the group may be informed of the consumer's failure to satisfy thecommitment as the predefined date approaches. In one embodiment theconsumer may be provided with a message that the group will be informedof the consumer's failure to satisfy the obligation unless the consumerdoes satisfy the obligation. Such a message may be provided to theconsumer (i) on or before the predefined date (e.g., to encourage theconsumer to fulfill the obligation before the predefined date); and/or(ii) on or after the predefined date (e.g., to give the consumer onemore chance to satisfy the obligation even though the predefined datehas passed). A consumer may be motivated to satisfy an obligation uponreceiving such a message to avoid having the group learn of theconsumer's individual failure and potential responsibility for thefailure of the entire group to earn a benefit.

[0095] The date 518 stores an indication of a time by which the customermust fulfill an obligation, if applicable. It should be noted that morethan one time may be indicated, e.g., if the consumer is associated withmore than one obligation.

[0096] 3.2. Group Database

[0097] Referring to FIG. 6, a table represents the group database 427that may be stored at the controller 210, primary controller 260 or oneor more of the secondary controllers 270 and 280 according to someembodiments of the present invention. The table includes entriesidentifying a group corresponding to one or more consumers. The tabledefines fields 1102, 1104, 1106, 1108, 1110, and 1112 for each of theentries. The fields specify: a group identifier 1102; a group name 1104;a group leader 1106; group members 1108; accepted offers 1110; andbeneficiaries 1112.

[0098] The information in the group database 427 may be created andupdated, for example, based on information received from a group (e.g.,from a group leader on behalf of the group). For example, theinformation may be created when a consumer or a group registers with amerchant. The information may be subsequently updated when a consumerrequests to update the information (e.g., when a group indicates adesire to add or remove a group) or when additional information isobtained from a group identified by one of the entries (e.g., when agroup elects a new group leader).

[0099] The group identifier 1102 may comprise any identifier thatuniquely identifies a group. The group identifier may comprise, e.g., astring of alphanumeric digits and/or an image. The group identifier maybe (i) provided by a group at the time the group designates the group;(ii) generated or selected by one of the controller 210, primarycontroller 260, one of the secondary controllers 270 and 280, and/or anyof the consumer devices 220, 275 and 285; or (iii) provided by the groupin embodiments where the group is contacted. For example, the groupidentifier may comprise a unique string of alphanumeric digits that isgenerated to uniquely identify the group.

[0100] The group name 1104 stores the name of the group corresponding tothe group identifier. The name may be (i) provided by the group; (ii)designated by the merchant; or (iii) otherwise obtained by the merchant(e.g., received from a beneficiary). The name of the group may beretrieved and incorporated into the provision of an offer to the group.For example, assuming the group's name is “The Youngsters,” the groupmay be provided with an offer that invites the group to commit to anobligation in order to earn the benefit defined by the offer for “TheYoungsters.” Personalizing an offer in such a manner may substantiallyincrease the acceptance rate of the offer.

[0101] The group leader 1106 stores an identification of a group leader,if any, that the group has designated. The group leader 1006 maycomprise any information sufficient to identify the group leader.Information identifying the group leader as stored in the group leader1006 may correspond to or be the same as one or more of the consumeridentifiers stored in the consumer identifier field 502 of the consumerdatabase 425 (FIG. 5).

[0102] It should be noted that more than one group leader may be inassociation with a particular group identifier 1102. For example, agroup may establish more than one leader so that it is more likely onewill be available if any of the group members, merchants, or entitiescontrolling the system need to get in contact with the group.

[0103] The group leader may perform various functions including, but notlimited to: (i) communicating information to the group regarding thegroup's progress toward fulfilling its obligations; (ii) presentingoffer information to the group, including potential benefits, penalties,and/or obligations; (iii) communicating with one or more group memberswho are in danger of not fulfilling an obligation (e.g., where apredefined time limit is expiring); (iv) communicating with variousentities on behalf of the group (e.g., a beneficiary, a merchant, or acontroller); (v) identifying and enrolling new members in the group; and(vi) recommending that a group member be removed from the group.

[0104] The group leader may be (i) designated by the group; or (ii)designated by some other entity. For example, the group may vote toelect a leader. In some embodiments, the controller may appoint thegroup leader based on any number of different criteria. For example, thecontroller may designate the group member to identify himself to thecontroller as the leader of the group, or may select the oldest groupmember, the senior group member, the member having the longestaffiliation with a designated beneficiary, etc.

[0105] The name of the group leader may be retrieved and incorporatedinto the provision of an offer to the group. For example, assuming thegroup leader's name is “Mick Darby,” the group may be provided with anoffer “from your leader Mick Darby” that invites the group to commit toan obligation in order to earn the benefit defined by the offer.Personalizing an offer in such a manner may substantially increase theacceptance rate of the offer.

[0106] The accepted offers field 1110 stores an identification of one ormore offers, if any, that the group has accepted. The accepted offers1110 may comprise any information sufficient to identify an acceptedoffer. An identifier stored in the accepted offers field 1110 maycorrespond to or be the same as one or more of the offer identifiersstored in the offer identifier field 1004 in the accepted offer trackingdatabase 450 (FIG. 9) or the offer identifiers stored in offeridentifier field 700 in the group offers database 435 (FIG. 8A). Asillustrated in table 427, more than one indication of an accepted offermay be stored in association with a particular group identifier 1102.

[0107] The beneficiaries field 1112 stores an identification of one ormore beneficiaries, if any, that the group has designated. Thebeneficiaries 1112 may comprise any information sufficient to identify adesignated beneficiary. An identifier stored in the beneficiaries field1112 may correspond to or be the same as one or more of the offeridentifiers stored in the beneficiary identifier field 602 in thebeneficiary database 430 (FIG. 7) or the beneficiary identifier storedin beneficiary identifier field 1006 in the accepted offer database 450(FIG. 9). As illustrated in table 427, more than one indication of abeneficiary may be stored in association with a particular groupidentifier 1102.

[0108] The beneficiary may be (i) provided by the group (e.g., as theresult of a vote, as indicated by the group leader); (ii) designated bythe merchant (e.g., as defined in an offer); or (iii) otherwise obtainedby the merchant.

[0109] 3.3. Beneficiary Database

[0110] Referring to FIG. 7, a table represents the beneficiary database430 that may be stored at the controller 210, primary controller 260 orone or more of the secondary controllers 270 and 280 according to someembodiments of the present invention. The table includes entriesidentifying one or more entities associated with a group of consumers.The entities (e.g., persons or organizations) are beneficiariesdesignated by a group of consumers as the recipient of a benefit definedby an offer accepted by the group. The table defines fields 602, 604,606, and 608 for each of the entries. The fields specify: a beneficiaryidentifier 602; a beneficiary name 604; a financial account identifier606; and a beneficiary address 608.

[0111] The information in the beneficiary database 430 may be createdand updated, for example, based on information received from a consumeror a group. For example, the information may be created when a consumeror a group registers with a merchant. The information may besubsequently updated when a consumer requests to update the information(e.g., when a group indicates a desire to add or remove a beneficiary)or when additional information is obtained from a beneficiary identifiedby one of the entries (e.g., when a request to be removed from thebeneficiary database 430 or updated contact information is received froma beneficiary).

[0112] As described above, according to some embodiments of the presentinvention a group of consumers may designate a recipient other than thegroup to receive a benefit defined by an offer accepted by the group.Such a person is referred to as a beneficiary in the present invention.A group may designate a beneficiary when the group first registers witha credit card issuer or at a time subsequent to registering with thecredit card issuer by, e.g., contacting a representative of the creditcard issuer and indicating the group's desire to designate thebeneficiary. Alternatively, the group may be able to designate abeneficiary by filling out a form (e.g., a paper document that is handedor mailed to an employee of the credit card issuer or an electronic format a Web site operated by the credit card issuer). In some embodimentsthe group may designate a beneficiary while one of the group members(e.g., the group leader) is operating a consumer device. For example,when presented at a Web site with an offer that defines a benefit agroup leader may be presented with an option of obtaining the benefitfor the group or for another entity. If the group leader (e.g., afterconsulting with other group members) chooses the option of obtaining thebenefit for another person the group leader may be requested to enterinformation to identify the beneficiary. In another embodiment a groupmay indicate a desire to designate a beneficiary without first beingpresented with an offer. For example, a group leader may select a“designate beneficiary to receive benefits” option on a menu of optionson a Web site operated by a credit card issuer.

[0113] It should be noted that a beneficiary need not be affiliated withthe merchant in any manner beyond being a beneficiary designated by agroup of consumers.

[0114] A particular beneficiary may or may not correspond to aparticular benefit or accepted offer. In some embodiments a consumergroup may designate one or more beneficiaries to be associated with thegroup's group identifier. In such embodiments the group may specifywhich particular beneficiary is to be provided the benefit defined by aparticular offer at the time the consumer accepts the offer. In otherembodiments a group may provide information designating a beneficiary asthe person to be provided the benefit defined by an offer as the groupis accepting the offer, for purposes of that particular offer only. Inembodiments where a group designates one or more beneficiaries withoutconstraint to a particular offer, the information the consumer providesregarding the one or more beneficiaries may be used to target or tailoroffers to the group. Such an embodiment will be described withparticular reference to table 430.

[0115] Returning now to table 430, the beneficiary identifier 602 maycomprise any identifier that uniquely identifies a beneficiary. Thebeneficiary identifier may comprise, e.g., a string of alphanumericdigits and/or an image. The beneficiary identifier may be (i) providedby a group at the time the group designates the beneficiary; (ii)generated or selected by one of the controller 210, primary controller260, one of the secondary controllers 270 and 280, and/or any of theconsumer devices 220, 275 and 285; or (iii) provided by the beneficiaryin embodiments where the beneficiary is contacted. For example, thebeneficiary identifier may comprise a unique string of alphanumericdigits that is generated to uniquely identify the beneficiary.

[0116] The beneficiary name 604 stores the name of the beneficiarycorresponding to the beneficiary identifier. The name may be (i)provided by the group designating the beneficiary; (ii) provided by thebeneficiary; or (iii) otherwise obtained by the merchant. As illustratedby the names stored in table 430, the beneficiary need not be a naturalperson but may instead comprise a corporation, non-profit organization,or other entity. The name of the beneficiary may be retrieved andincorporated into the provision of an offer to the consumer who haddesignated the beneficiary. For example, assuming the beneficiary's nameis “John Doe” a group may be provided with an offer that invites thegroup to commit to an obligation in order to earn the benefit defined bythe offer for “John”. The relationship of the beneficiary to the groupmay also be stored in table 430 (e.g., an indication that thebeneficiary is the brother of one of the group members, or is anorganization to which some or all of the group members belong). In suchan embodiment the group may be provided with an offer that invites thegroup to earn the benefit “for Sam's brother John.” Personalizing anoffer in such a manner may substantially increase the acceptance rate ofthe offer.

[0117] The beneficiary database 430 also stores a financial accountidentifier 606 (e.g., a credit card account number, a debit card accountnumber, a checking account number) associated with the beneficiary. Thefinancial account identifier 606 may be used, for example, to credit apayment to the beneficiary (e.g., wherein a benefit comprises a monetaryamount). The financial account identifier 606 may also be used to chargea monetary amount to the account wherein the monetary amount is based ona value of a benefit provided to the beneficiary, in an embodimentwhere, for example, a group is provided a benefit before satisfying anobligation and subsequently does not satisfy the obligation.

[0118] The beneficiary address 608 stores an indication of how tocontact the beneficiary. Beneficiary address information may comprise,e.g., a telephone number, electronic mail (“e-mail”) address, or postaladdress. The information may be utilized to contact the beneficiary. Thebeneficiary may be contacted in a variety of circumstances in accordancewith various embodiments of the present invention. In one embodiment thebeneficiary may be contacted initially when a consumer first designatesthe entity as a beneficiary. For example, the beneficiary's permissionto be associated with the group as a beneficiary may be necessary orpreferred. In another embodiment the beneficiary may be contacted when agroup accepts an offer and specifies that the beneficiary is to beprovided the benefit defined by the offer. For example, beforefinalizing that the beneficiary is to be provided with the benefit thebeneficiary's acquiescence may be necessary or preferred. This may bepreferred to avoid a situation in which the intended recipient feelsuncomfortable as a result of the offer. In embodiments where thebeneficiary is contacted when a group accepts an offer, the beneficiarymay be informed of what the benefit is and/or the obligation theconsumer committed to in exchange for the benefit.

[0119] In some embodiments the beneficiary may be provided with thebenefit before the consumer satisfies the obligation. In such anembodiment the beneficiary may be informed of a penalty, if any, thatmay be imposed on the group and/or the beneficiary if the groupsubsequently fails to satisfy the obligation. For example, thebeneficiary may be required to return the benefit or provide a valueequivalent to the benefit if the group does not satisfy the obligation.In embodiments where the beneficiary is not provided the benefit untilthe group satisfies the obligation the beneficiary may be informed ofthe progress of the group towards satisfying the obligation. Forexample, assuming the obligation comprises playing at a slot machine foran hour, the beneficiary may be updated every fifteen minutes as to thegroup's progress towards satisfying the obligation (e.g., via e-mailmessages transmitted to the beneficiary). In one embodiment the groupand the beneficiary may be placed in contact while the group isattempting to satisfy the obligation (e.g., via a telephone or videoconnection) such that the beneficiary may encourage the group to satisfythe obligation. In another example, assuming the obligation comprises acommitment to visit a retailer or test a product before a predefineddate, the beneficiary may be informed of the group's failure to satisfythe commitment as the predefined date approaches. In one embodiment thegroup may be provided with a message that the beneficiary will beinformed of the group's failure to satisfy the obligation unless thegroup does satisfy the obligation. Such a message may be provided to thegroup (i) on or before the predefined date (e.g., to encourage the groupto fulfill the obligation before the predefined date); and/or (ii) on orafter the predefined date (e.g., to give the group one more chance tosatisfy the obligation even though the predefined date has passed). Agroup may be motivated to satisfy an obligation upon receiving such amessage to avoid having the beneficiary learn of the group's failure.

[0120] Further information relevant to a beneficiary may be stored andused to increase the effectiveness of offers. Such further informationmay comprise, for example, information related to the beneficiary'sinterests, hobbies, and/or demographic profile. In some embodiments abeneficiary may be allowed to provide information to the system that maybe used to customize and/or target offers to a consumer. A consumer mayor may not be informed of such information provided by the beneficiary.For example, in one embodiment a beneficiary may access some or all ofthe offers in the system of the present invention and provide anindication of which benefits the beneficiary is interested in (thusindicating which offers that define these benefits should be provided tothe consumer). In one embodiment once a consumer designates abeneficiary the beneficiary may be allowed to indicate to the consumerwhich benefits the beneficiary is interested in by means of, e.g., awish list stored in association with the beneficiary. When selectingoffers to be presented to the consumer the system may access such a wishlist and, e.g., select an offer based on the wish list.

[0121] 3.4. Group Offers Database

[0122] Referring to FIGS. 8A-8B, a table represents the group offersdatabase 435 that may be stored at the controller 210, primarycontroller 260 or one or more of the secondary controllers 270 and 280according to some embodiments of the present invention. According toanother embodiment, some or all of the information in the group offersdatabase 435 may be stored at one or more of the consumer devices 220,275, and 285 instead. The table includes entries identifying offers thatare available for presentation and/or have been accepted by at least onegroup. The table defines fields 700, 702, 704, 706, 708, 710, and 712for each of the entries. The fields specify: an offer identifier 700; abenefit 702; an obligation 704; a consumer prerequisite 706; a groupprerequisite 708; offer criterion 710; and a penalty 712.

[0123] The information in the group offers database 435 may be createdand updated, for example, based on information received from a merchantor subsidizing entity. For example, an offer identifier may be generatedand a record storing the information corresponding to the generatedoffer identifier may be stored in the group offers database 435 when amerchant transmits the information to a controller. The information maybe subsequently updated, for example, based on a request from themerchant and/or based on information obtained once the offer ispresented to one or more groups (e.g., the value of a benefit may beincreased if an acceptance rate of a particular offer is notsufficiently high). In some embodiments, the information may besubsequently updated based on a request or a desired preference of agroup. For example, an offer presented to a group may have provided aselection of benefits from which the group was asked to select. Once thegroup selected a benefit, the information in the corresponding recordmay be updated to indicate the selected benefit. Obligations andpenalties, as well as other types of information stored in the record,may be updated in a similar manner.

[0124] The offer identifier 700 may comprise, e.g., an alphanumericstring of digits that uniquely identifies an offer. The offer identifiermay be generated or selected (e.g., from a list of previously generatedidentifiers) when an offer is first entered into the system of thepresent invention.

[0125] The benefit 702 stores an indication of the benefit to beprovided in accordance with an offer. A benefit is anything (e.g., agood or service) provided in exchange for the group's commitment toand/or fulfillment of an obligation defined by the offer. As describedabove, a benefit may be provided to a person or entity other than thegroup. For example, the benefit may go to each of the group members, toparticular group members, to the group as a whole, to a designatedbeneficiary, or a combination thereof. A benefit may be provided at thetime the group commits to the obligation (e.g., when the group acceptsthe offer) or at another time (e.g., after the group satisfies theobligation corresponding to the benefit). In some embodiments, a groupmay earn a benefit merely by forming a group (e.g., by registering as agroup and supplying a membership roster, or otherwise affiliating as agroup).

[0126] In some embodiments the benefit may be divisible temporally suchthat a portion of the benefit may be provided at the time of the group'scommitment and another portion of the benefit may be provided at thetime the group satisfies the obligation. In some embodiments the benefitmay be provided in multiple portions as the group progresses towardssatisfying the obligation. A benefit may also be divisible among morethan one recipient. For example, a portion of a benefit may be providedto the group and another portion to a beneficiary designated by thegroup. In another example a benefit may be provided to two or morebeneficiaries. If the benefit is to be provided to more than onerecipient, the value of the benefit received by respective recipientsneed not be equal. In yet another embodiment a particular offer maydefine more than one benefit. In such an embodiment each of the definedbenefits may be provided to the same person or to different persons.

[0127] Examples of benefits include but are not limited to (i) amonetary amount (e.g., U.S. dollars, casino coins, cashless gamingreceipts, credits added to the group members' credit balances, or a giftcertificate to a retailer or restaurant); (ii) a product or service(e.g., a piece of jewelry, a gadget, a magazine subscription, tickets toa show, dinner at a restaurant, a carwash, a manicure); (iv) discountson products or services (e.g., 20% off a television, dinner for two forthe price of one); (v) alternate currencies (e.g., a specified number ofcomp points or frequent flier miles); (vi) an entry into a game ofchance (e.g., a lottery ticket or an entry into a sweepstakes); (vii) anamount or value based on the amount that the group potentially saves fora merchant in fulfilling an obligation (e.g., the group receives 50% ofthe difference between the group's actual charge-offs and the expectedcharge-offs for the group); and (viii) an adjustment in the operation ofa game device (e.g., a more favorable probability table, higheravailable payout amounts, lower maximum wager amount). A benefit may becustomized based on information about the group to whom the offer is tobe provided. For example, assuming the benefit defined by an offer is agift certificate to a restaurant or retailer for each member of thegroup, the actual restaurant(s) or retailer(s) identified in the offermay be determined based on the respective home addresses of the groupmembers or beneficiary to be provided the benefit.

[0128] Examples of benefits that may be sponsored by a credit cardissuer may include, but are not limited to: (i) reduced or maintainedincrease rates; (ii) postponement of payment due dates; (iii) increasedcredit limits; (iv) decreased minimum payments; and (v) forgiveness of apercentage of debt.

[0129] A benefit may be defined, e.g., at the time the offer to whichthe benefit corresponds is entered into the group offers database 435. Abenefit defined by an offer may or may not be defined by a merchantassociated with the offer or by the same entity that defined thecorresponding benefit. For example, a merchant other than a controllermay provide the offer or define a benefit, while a retailer may specifyone or more of the benefits defined by the offer. In some embodimentsthe group or one or more members of the group may be allowed to define abenefit for the group. For example, each member of the group mayindicate a benefit preference on an online form at a Web site hosted byan entity operating controller 210 (FIG. 2A), primary controller 260 oreither of the secondary controllers 270 and 280 (FIG. 2B), by casting avote for one or more of a set of benefits defined by the offer, or bywriting in a preferred benefit. Alternatively, the members may agree toa benefit and the group leader then may indicate a preference for thebenefit to an entity operating the system, on behalf of the group. Insome embodiments, the group and a merchant may negotiate some or allterms of the offer (e.g., the group may accept a lesser benefit inexchange for a less burdensome obligation).

[0130] In another embodiment the benefit may be defined on an ad hocbasis based on, for example, revenue management considerations of thecasino or other subsidizing entity providing the offer. For example, aretailer may determine that a product is not selling at an acceptablerate. The retailer may thus define a benefit of an offer provided by theretailer as a free unit of the product or a discount on the product.

[0131] The benefit may be provided to the group or beneficiarydesignated by the consumer by (i) the controller, (ii) a merchant otherthan the controller, (iii) another entity, or (iv) a combination thereofFor example, assume the subsidizing entity of an offer is an insuranceprovider and the benefit comprises a monetary amount to be provided tothe group once each member of the group has taken a test drive of aparticular car at a car dealership. In such an example the cardealership may provide the benefit to the group even though thedealership is not the subsidizing entity. In embodiments where thebenefit is provided to a group by an entity other than the subsidizingentity, the entity that provided the benefit may be subsequentlyreimbursed for the value of the benefit by the subsidizing entity. Forexample, in the above example the dealership may be reimbursed by theinsurance provider for the value of the monetary amount. In anotherexample, assume the dealership is the subsidizing entity and that theoffer presented to a group defines an obligation of test driving twodifferent car models in exchange for a benefit of a discount on aproduct at a retailer being provided to a beneficiary designated by thegroup. In this example the retailer may provide the discount to thebeneficiary and be subsequently reimbursed for the value of the discountby the dealership. In some embodiments the entity that provides thebenefit may be reimbursed for an amount greater than or less than thevalue of the benefit. For example, the entity that provides the benefitmay be reimbursed for the value of the benefit plus a premium forprocessing the provision of the benefit. In another example the entitythat provides the benefit may be reimbursed for the value of the benefitless an amount for the lead on a new customer (e.g., in the aboveexample where the beneficiary obtains the discount from the retailer theretailer benefits by acquiring a new potential customer by having thebeneficiary purchase the product from the retailer).

[0132] The obligation 704 stores an indication of the obligation thegroup must commit to and/or fulfill to receive the correspondingbenefit. An obligation comprises any task that one or more members of agroup must commit to in order to obtain the corresponding benefitdefined by the offer. As discussed above with respect the consumerdatabase 425, in some embodiments one or more members of the group mayhave to commit to and/or fulfill an individual obligation in order forthe group to earn the benefit. For example, a group member may accept anobligation to acquire no more than one speeding ticket in a given year.Even though such an obligation may be specific to only a subset of thegroup membership, such embodiments may still be described herein as anobligation of the group; it is an obligation of the group that eachindividual member fulfill any specific individual obligations.Accordingly, the group members have an incentive to encourage each otherto achieve any individual obligations. One or more of the group membersmay or may not have the same individual obligation.

[0133] In other embodiments, the obligation may be met by aggregateactivity or behavior of the group. For example, an obligation mayrequire that the group make $10,000 in aggregated purchases at aretailer within a year. No one particular group member need make aparticular amount of purchases to meet the obligation, or need even makea purchase at all. However, by the end of the year, some combination ofone or more members must have accumulated $10,000 in purchases at theretailer in order for the group to earn the reward. Accordingly, thegroup members have an incentive to encourage each other to makepurchases at the retailer.

[0134] It should be noted that an offer may define more than oneobligation. In some embodiments, a group of consumers may commit to bothaggregate and individual obligations. In embodiments where an offerdefines a plurality of obligations the group may or may not be requiredto perform each of the obligations defined by the offer in order toobtain the corresponding benefit. For example, the group may be allowedto choose a subset of the obligations defined by the offer (e.g., one ofthe plurality of obligations) and be provided with the correspondingbenefit in exchange for committing to the subset of obligations. Anobligation defined by an offer may or may not be defined by asubsidizing entity associated with the offer or by the same entity thatdefined the corresponding benefit. For example, a merchant other than acontroller may provide the offer or define a benefit while the casinomay specify one or more of the obligations defined by the offer. In someembodiments the group or one or more members of the group may be allowedto define an obligation for the group. For example, each member of thegroup may indicate an obligation preference on an online form at a Website hosted by an entity operating controller 210 (FIG. 2A), primarycontroller 260 or either of the secondary controllers 270 and 280 (FIG.2B), by casting a vote for one or more of a set of obligations definedby the offer, or by writing in a preferred obligation. Alternatively,the members may agree to an obligation and the group leader then mayindicate a preference for the obligation to an entity operating thesystem, on behalf of the consumer and/or the group.

[0135] Examples of obligations and conditions applicable to obligations,as well as other characteristics of obligations, are discussed abovewith respect to consumer database 430.

[0136] The consumer prerequisite 706 stores an indication of anyprerequisites related to a group member that may need to be satisfiedbefore the member's group can accept the offer. Alternatively, theconsumer prerequisite may need to be satisfied before the offercorresponding to the prerequisite may be presented to the consumerand/or the consumer's group. A consumer-related prerequisite is aprerequisite that is based on information related to a group member. Forexample, a consumer-related prerequisite may be a demographic profile ofa group member. A consumer prerequisite may be specified by the entityproviding the offer to the system of the present invention, such as aretailer, in embodiments wherein the retailer is not acting as theentity operating the primary controller 260 (FIG. 2B). A consumerprerequisite may need to be satisfied by each member of a group or by acertain number or percentage of members of the group for the group toqualify for the offer.

[0137] More than one consumer-related prerequisite may be specified. Inembodiments where more than one consumer-related prerequisite isspecified for a given offer, only one of the specified consumer-relatedprerequisites may need be satisfied before a group qualifies for theoffer. In other embodiments all of the specified consumer-relatedprerequisites or a particular number or combination of theconsumer-related prerequisites need be satisfied before the group iseligible for the corresponding offer.

[0138] Examples of consumer-related prerequisites comprise: (i) thegroup member must be female; (ii) the group member must not havepreviously accepted this offer; (iii) the group member must not havepreviously accepted any offer; (iv) the group member must havepreviously rejected another offer; (v) the group member must not havebeen presented with another offer within a predetermined time period;(vi) the group member must visit the retailer a predetermined number oftimes within a predetermined time period; (vii) the group member mustnot be a customer of a specified service provider that is the subject ofthe offer; (viii) the group member must not own the product that is thesubject of the offer; (ix) the group member must have a specified creditrating; (x) the group member must have a specified income; (xi) thegroup member must have a specified risk score; and (xii) the groupmember must have performed an activity within a specified time periodbefore the current date (e.g., traveled outside of the country).Merchants may specify the consumer-related prerequisites when submittingan offer to the system in order to better target, and therefore at leasttheoretically increase the acceptance rate of, the offer.

[0139] The group prerequisite 708 stores an indication of anyprerequisites related to a group that may need to be satisfied beforethe group is eligible to be recognized by the controller and/or iseligible to accept an offer. Alternatively, the group prerequisite mayneed to be satisfied before the offer corresponding to the prerequisiteis presented to the group. A group-related prerequisite is aprerequisite that is based on information related to a group. Forexample, a group-related prerequisite may be an average credit riskscore or an average outstanding monthly credit card balance of thegroup. A group prerequisite may be specified by the entity providing theoffer to the system of the present invention, such as a credit cardissuer, in embodiments wherein the retailer is not acting as the entityoperating the controller 260 (FIG. 2B).

[0140] More than one group-related prerequisite may be specified. Inembodiments where more than one group-related prerequisite is specifiedfor a given offer, only one of the specified group-related prerequisitesmay need be satisfied before a group qualifies for an offer. In otherembodiments all of the specified group-related prerequisites or aparticular number or combination of the group-related prerequisites needbe satisfied before the group qualifies for the corresponding offer.

[0141] Examples of group-related prerequisites comprise: (i) the groupmust have at least five members; (ii) the group must not have previouslyaccepted this offer; (iii) the group must not have previously acceptedany offer; (iv) the group must have previously rejected another offer;(v) the group must not have been presented with another offer within apredetermined time period; (vi) in aggregate, the group must visit aretailer a predetermined number of times within a predetermined timeperiod; (vii) the group must have a specified average monthly aggregatecredit card charge amount; (viii) the group have a specified averageamount wagered annually; (ix) the group must have a specified averagecredit rating; (x) the group must have a specified average income; (xi)the group must have a specified average risk score; and (xii) the groupmust have a specified average age. Merchants may specify thegroup-related prerequisites when submitting an offer to the system inorder to better target, and therefore at least theoretically increasethe acceptance rate of, the offer.

[0142] Merchants may effectively use group and consumer prerequisites toestablish rules for the formation of groups. For example, a merchant mayrequire that each group member responding seeking to accept an offeragree to be in the group with the other members. This may assure thatgroup members can work together and help each other in accomplishinggroup goals. A merchant may desire that group members have commoncharacteristics, believing that a commonality will make members morelikely to work together. Accordingly, a merchant may set up aprerequisite that members be of similar ages; be from the samegeographic location; be affiliated with the same organization,beneficiary, or religion; and/or have the same marital status, creditstatus, or risk score. A requirement that a member of group agree tocontact or attempt to communicate with at least one other member acertain minimum times per month (or some other period) may help assurethat group members exert influence over one another. A memberprerequisite may be that the consumers seeking to form a group had tohave indicated a common preference for an obligation and/or penalty.Further, a requirement that group members agree to remain in the group(and therefore subject to any obligations it may assume) for aparticular period of time might assure that more dedicated consumersenroll in groups.

[0143] The offer criterion 710 stores an indication of a criterion thatmust be satisfied before an offer may be presented to a consumer orgroup. An offer criterion may function as a trigger that causes an offerto be output to a consumer or group. In other words, in some embodimentsan offer is output to a group once it is determined that the offercriterion corresponding to the offer has been met in relation to thegroup. In other embodiments an event or condition other than the offercriterion functions as a trigger which causes the potential output of anoffer to a consumer or a group and the offer criterion functions in thedetermination of whether to output the offer (i.e., the offer is onlyactually output if the offer criterion is satisfied). An offercriterion, in contrast to a consumer- or group-related prerequisite, isa criterion not based on a characteristic of a particular consumer orgroup.

[0144] It should be understood that the information stored in consumerprerequisite 706 and group prerequisite 708 and the information storedin offer criterion 710 is not mutually exclusive (i.e., there may besome overlap in the information stored in the three fields). Of coursein some embodiments the information stored in consumer prerequisite 706and group prerequisite 708 and the information stored in offer criterion710 may be combined or segregated in a manner other than describedabove.

[0145] An offer criterion may be specified by (i) a merchant orsubsidizing entity associated with the offer; (ii) an owner or operatorof a consumer device; (iii) controller 210 (FIG. 2A), primary controller260 or one or more of the secondary controllers 270 and 280 (FIG. 2B);or (iv) any combination thereof. It should be understood that more thanone offer criterion may be specified for a given offer. In embodimentswhere more than one offer criterion is specified for a given offer, onlyone of the specified offer criteria may need be satisfied before anoffer is output to a consumer. In other embodiments all of the specifiedoffer criteria or a particular number of combination of the criterianeed be satisfied before the corresponding offer is output to a consumeror a group.

[0146] Methods of determining when or which offer to output to aconsumer may be utilized by an operator of the systems of the presentinvention. For example, an offer may be output or selected based onrevenue management considerations of a retailer. Revenue managementconsiderations include the availability of a product or service of theretailer and are discussed variously above.

[0147] The penalty 712 stores information identifying a penalty that maybe applied if a group fails to fulfill an obligation defined by an offerthe group accepted. As illustrated in the group offers database 435, notevery offer need identify a penalty. For example, some credit cardissuers may be willing to accept the risk that a group will not satisfyan obligation the group committed to. In embodiments where the benefitis not provided to a group or beneficiary until the group or anyrequired group member fulfills the obligation a penalty may not benecessary (the withholding of the benefit may be enough incentive toencourage the fulfillment of the obligation). A penalty may be assessedto (i) the group who committed to the obligation defined by the offer;(ii) the beneficiary designated by the group; or (iii) a combinationthereof. A group is informed of any penalty associated with an offer atthe time the group is presented with the offer.

[0148] Examples of penalties include but are not limited to (i) amonetary charge or debit to an account identifier; (ii) an adjustment tothe operation of a slot machine (e.g., a decrease in available payoutamounts of any consumer device operated by the consumer during theconsumer's next visit to the casino or an unavailability of certainbonuses when the consumer subsequently plays a specified game in acasino); (iii) an unavailability of a service or product to a consumer(e.g., the consumer will be unable to stay in the casino hotel for apredetermined amount of time); (iv) publication of the group's or one ormore group member's failure to fulfill the obligation; (v) a return ofthe benefit or a monetary amount based on the value of the benefit; (vi)an inability by the consumer to receive subsequent offers; (vii) adeduction from a balance of alternate currency associated with aconsumer (e.g., a deduction of comp consumer points or frequent fliermiles); (viii) a detrimental change in the terms or conditions of anaccount (e.g., an increased interest rate, a higher premium, a lowercredit limit, an earlier payment due date).

[0149] In some embodiments a group or a group member may be providedwith an opportunity to avoid a penalty even after the group or consumerfails to fulfill an obligation corresponding to the penalty within apredetermined amount of time. For example, assume a ten-member groupcommits to seven members visiting a retailer within thirty (30) days inexchange for each member receiving a software application at the timethe consumer commits to the obligation. Assume further that the penaltydefined by the offer is the disabling of the software application. Onceit is determined that the group has failed to encourage seven of itsmembers to visit the retailer within the 30 days the consumer may beprovided with a message (e.g., via e-mail) that the software applicationwill become inoperative unless one group member visits the retailerwithin the following five (5) days. In some embodiments the consumer maybe required to commit to an obligation in addition to the originalobligation in order to avoid the penalty (e.g., in the above example thegroup member may now be required to not only visit the retailer but toalso complete a minimum purchase with the retailer).

[0150] The monitoring function of whether a consumer has fulfilled anobligation and/or whether a penalty should be assessed may be performedby (i) a merchant; (ii) a subsidizing entity; (iii) an entity providinga benefit; (iv) an entity operating controller 210 (FIG. 2A), primarycontroller 260 or either of the secondary controllers 270 and 280 (FIG.2B); (v) an entity operating any of the consumer devices 220 (FIG. 2A),or the consumer devices 275 and 285 (FIG. 2B); (vi) any other entitytasked with such a function; or (vii) a combination thereof.

[0151] For example, assume a group commits to an obligation to visit aspecified retailer within a specified period of time. Once the groupcommits to the obligation the retailer may be informed of the identitiesof the members of the group and the period of time within which eachmember of the group must make the visit. The retailer may then monitorvisiting customers to determine whether any group member visits infulfillment of the obligation. Once the retailer determines that groupmember has visited the retailer the retailer may inform the controlleror other operator tasked with assessing a penalty corresponding to theconsumer's failure to perform the task. If at the end of thepredetermined period of time no indication of the group's visit to theretailer is received the penalty may be assessed. In such an example thegroup, at the time of committing to the obligation, may be provided withan identifier to provide to the retailer at the time of each member'svisit to the retailer in order to aid the retailer in identifying thegroup members as having visited in fulfillment of the obligation. Theretailer may also be informed of the identifier provided to the group atthe time the group commits to the obligation. Other methods ofdetermining whether a group has fulfilled an obligation would beunderstood by one of ordinary skill in the art and are within the scopeof the present invention.

[0152] 3.5. Accepted Offer Tracking Database

[0153] Referring to FIG. 9, a table represents the accepted offerdatabase 450 that may be stored at the controller 210, primarycontroller 260 or one or more of the secondary controllers 270 and 280according to some embodiments of the present invention. According toanother embodiment, some or all of the information in the accepted offerdatabase 450 may be stored at one or more of the consumer devices 220,275, and 285 instead. The table includes entries identifying offers thathave been accepted by groups of consumers. The table defines fields1002, 1004, 1006, 1008, and 1010 for each of the entries. The fieldsspecify: a group identifier 1002; an offer identifier 1004; abeneficiary identifier 1006; a status of obligation 1008; and a statusof benefit 1010.

[0154] The information in the accepted offer tracking database 450 maybe created and updated, for example, based on information received froma consumer device. For example, the information may be created when agroup leader accepts an offer on behalf of his group at a consumerdevice. The information may be subsequently updated, e.g., when a groupfulfills an obligation or a benefit is provided to the group or thegroup's designated beneficiary.

[0155] The group identifier 1002 stores an indication of a groupidentifier that uniquely identifies a group who accepted the offercorresponding to a given record of the accepted offer tracking database450. The group identifier 1002 may comprise an alphanumeric code. Agroup identifier stored in the group identifier field 1002 maycorrespond to or be the same as one or more of the group identifiersstored in group identifier field 1102 in the group database 427 (FIG.6).

[0156] The offer identifier 1004 stores information uniquely identifyingan offer that was accepted by the group identified by the groupidentifier of the same record. The offer identifier 1004 may comprise,for example, an alphanumeric code. An offer identifier stored in theoffer identifier field 1004 may correspond to or be the same as one ormore offer identifiers stored in offer identifier field 700 in the groupoffers database 435 (FIG. 8A). An offer identifier stored in the offeridentifier field 1004 may be used to determine, for example, (i) thebenefit to be provided to the group that accepted the offer of the samerecord, (ii) any additional requirements of the offer that the group isto abide by, or (iii) what penalty, if any, is to be assessed to thegroup and/or a beneficiary designated by the group.

[0157] The beneficiary identifier 1006 stores an identification of abeneficiary, if any, that the group has designated as the beneficiary tobe provided with the benefit defined by the offer. The beneficiaryidentifier 1006 may comprise any information sufficient to identify abeneficiary. A beneficiary identifier stored in the beneficiaryidentifier field 1006 may correspond to or be the same as one or more ofthe beneficiary identifiers stored in the beneficiary identifier field602 of the beneficiary database 430 (FIG. 7). As illustrated in table450, more than one beneficiary identifier may be stored in associationwith a particular group identifier 1002. Furthermore, the samebeneficiary identifier 1004 may be stored in association with more thanone group identifier 1002.

[0158] The status of obligation 1008 stores an indication of the statusof the obligation defined by the offer of a given record. Examplestatuses, some of which are illustrated in table 450, are: (i) a statusof “satisfied” (indicating that the consumer has satisfied theobligation); (ii) a status of “failed” (indicating that the consumer hasfailed to satisfy the obligation); (iii) a status of “in progress”(indicating that the consumer is currently attempting to satisfy theobligation); and a status of “pending” (indicating that a consumer hasnot yet attempted to satisfy an obligation but has time remaining to doso before the consumer is considered to have failed to fulfill theobligation). Other appropriate statuses may be understood by one ofordinary skill in the art and are within the scope of the presentinvention.

[0159] The status of benefit 1010 stores an indication of whether thebenefit defined by the offer of a given record has or has not beenprovided. As discussed above, a benefit may be provided to the group orto a beneficiary. Thus a status of “provided” indicates that the benefithas been provided to the group if no beneficiary is indicated in therecord and that the benefit has been provided to the beneficiary if oneor more beneficiaries are indicated in the record. In an embodimentwherein a benefit, or portion of a benefit, is provided to both a groupand a beneficiary or to more than one beneficiary, a separate indicationfor each of the persons to whom the benefit is to be provided may bestored. As also discussed above, a benefit may be provided at the time agroup commits to an obligation and/or at the time a group satisfies theobligation. If a benefit is provided at the time a group commits to anobligation but the group subsequently fails to satisfy the obligation apenalty may be assessed. Such an example is illustrated in the secondrecord of table 450. In the example of this record the system may, upondetermining that the status of the benefit is “provided” and the statusof the obligation is “failed” retrieve the penalty corresponding to theoffer based on the offer identifier. The system may then assess thepenalty as appropriate.

[0160] 4. Description of Flow Diagram

[0161] Referring now to FIGS. 10A and 10B, a flow diagram illustratingan embodiment of the present invention is illustrated as process 1200.Process 1200 may be performed by (i) a consumer device (such as one ofthe consumer devices 220, 275, and 285); (ii) a controller incommunication with the consumer device (such as one of the controller210, the primary controller 260, and one or more of the secondarycontrollers 270 and 280); or (iii) a combination thereof.

[0162] Process 1200 begins with step 1210, which comprises outputting anoffer to provide a benefit in exchange for a peer group satisfying atleast one obligation.

[0163] An offer may be presented to in various ways. Examples of how anoffer may be presented include, but are not limited to: (i) a visualpresentation (which may be accompanied by audio) on a screen associatedwith a consumer device (e.g., POS terminal, game device, or conventionalpersonal computer); (ii) an audio presentation via a speaker associatedwith a consumer device; (iii) printing of the offer or outputting of theoffer on paper; (iv) transmission of the offer via email; (v) mailing ofa representation of the offer to one or more consumers; (vi) publishingof a representation of the offer in a periodical; and (vii) an oralpresentation of the offer by an employee of a merchant.

[0164] The consumers to whom the offer is presented may or may not beassociated with a group of consumers. As the offer is to provide abenefit in exchange for a peer group satisfying an obligation, the offermay motivate consumers to attempt to form a peer group in order to takeadvantage of the offer.

[0165] In step 1215, consumer information is received. Such informationmay take a variety of forms. For example, as described herein, one ormore consumers may decide to form a peer group in order to accept thepresented offer. Accordingly, the consumers will attempt to have theirpeer group accepted by the merchant operating the reward program. Insome embodiments, the peer group may indicate its desire to be acceptedby fulfilling, or starting to fulfill, an obligation defined by theoffer. For example, members of a group may apply for a credit cardreferenced by the offer. Based on information received through theapplication process, the merchant, such as a credit card issuer,determines in step 1220 whether to accept the peer group for thepurposes of the offer. A variety of consumer and group prerequisites,such as described above with respect to group offers database 435, maybe used to analyze the received consumer information. For example, fiveconsumers may apply for a credit card, in accordance with an offer, andidentify themselves as being associated as a group, “The Stone Dragons.”However, in addition to requiring that the consumers be signed up forthe credit card, the presented offer may require that the group have atleast seven members signed up. Accordingly, the merchant will not accept“The Stone Dragons” as a peer group for the purposes of the offer. Ofcourse, the membership in “The Stone Dragons” may eventually increaseand meet the requirement; the merchant will continue to analyze consumerinformation received as described at step 1215.

[0166] If it is determined that a group of consumers has met any allprerequisites corresponding to the offer, the controller stores the peergroup information. For example, the controller may create or update arecord in group database 427 (FIG. 6) with a group identifier, groupname, and/or group leader, if any. The merchant may also storeinformation about the group members, such as in consumer database 425(FIG. 5) and may store an association of the consumers with the group(e.g., in the group members field 1108 of group database 427).

[0167] In step 1230 the peer group and the merchant settle on the termsof the offer. For example, the initial offer may have defined a benefit,an obligation, and a penalty, but the merchant may be willing tonegotiate with the peer group to find agreeable terms. Alternatively,the merchant may have allowed the peer group to indicate a preferencefor an offer term, for example, by selecting a sub-set of obligationsfrom a set provided in the offer, or by indicating a new obligation.Once the terms are established, the merchant may store an indication ofthem, for example, by creating or updating a record in group offersdatabase 435 (FIGS. 8A-8B) and/or in accepted offer tracking database450 (FIG. 9). Any obligations specific to members of the group may beindicated in consumer database 425 (FIG. 5), for example.

[0168] Steps 1240 and 1245 comprise a routine in which the merchantreceives transaction data corresponding to the peer group. Informationabout consumers' behavior may be received from other merchants (such asone or more of the secondary controllers 270 and 280) and/or consumerdevices (such as one or more of consumer devices 220, 27 and 285).Transactions may comprise various types of consumer activity, including,but not limited to: wagering at a slot machine, filing an insuranceclaim, taking a medical examination, and/or making a purchase. Acontroller may receive detailed transaction data, or may receive only anindication that, for example, a group has satisfied or failed to met anobligation. A merchant may store and track the data associated with thevarious members of a peer group and aggregate data to determine groupdata in any of various ways well known to those having ordinary skill inthe art. For example, consumer database 425 and/or group database 427may be configured to track such information.

[0169] If it is determined in step 1245 that any individual and/oraggregate obligations of the group have been satisfied, in step 1250 therecipients of the benefit earned by the peer group are determined. Asdescribed variously herein, benefits may be provided to the group as awhole, to some or all of the individual members, to a beneficiaryassociated with the group, or a combination thereof. A beneficiary maybe associated with an accepted offer, for example, in accepted offertracking database 450 (FIG. 9). Once the recipient(s) is determined thebenefit according to the terms of the offer is provided (e.g., adonation is made to a beneficiary, or a monetary amount is given to thegroup and/or group members) in step 1255.

[0170] Some alternative embodiments of the present invention provide forthe formation of sub-groups within a larger group of consumers. A memberof a sub-group may accept an additional obligation beyond an obligationassumed already for the benefit of the main group. For example, in agroup of credit card holders, a particularly wealthy sub-set of cardholders may form their own sub-group with more burdensome card usagerequirements than those of the main group; however, the correspondingbenefit may also be larger than that available to the main group.

[0171] Other alternative embodiments of the present invention providethat group members may sign a document to indicate agreement with theterms and conditions for forming and operating the group. For example, agroup member may sign a special line on an account statement (e.g., acredit card statement) that is then returned to the merchant (e.g., acredit card issuing bank). The group member may sign a separate formreceived in the mail, via email, over the Internet, or from anothergroup member or a beneficiary. A group member may also employ a digitalsignature and communicate such a signature via email or over theInternet.

[0172] According to some embodiments, under certain conditions, a groupmember may voluntarily depart from the group. For example, a groupmember may voluntarily depart by informing one or more of: thecontroller, other group members, or the beneficiary. A fee may berequired for a member's departure, to be paid by either the departingmember or the group.

[0173] In some embodiments, a member may be terminated by the will ofother group members, a beneficiary, or a merchant. When a group memberleaves the group, he may lose any benefits, such as lower interestrates, associated with participating in the group. In addition, hiscredit card usage may no longer contribute to the rewards given to thegroup or to the beneficiary on behalf of the group. In some embodiments,the obligations of the group may be modified to compensate for member'sdeparture. For example, if a ten-member group needed $10,000 inaggregate new charges, the obligation may be adjusted to only $9,000 inaggregate new charges after a group member leaves.

[0174] Members of a group may agree joint and several liability for anyindividual and group obligations. Thus, one or more group members may befinancially responsible, for example, for unpaid credit card debts ofone or more other group members.

[0175] It has been mentioned that a credit card issuing bank, a casino,or a health insurance company might serve as a controller. However, acontroller need not represent a particular business or even a particularindustry. A controller might facilitate the formation of groups whosebehavior benefits widely differing merchants. For example, a controllermight facilitate the formation of a gambling group whose goal would beto make $100,000 in aggregate wagers at the Sunflower Casino in the nextyear. The controller might facilitate the formation of a second groupwhose goal would be to make an aggregate of $10,000 in purchases at theMayflower Supermarket in the next year. As facilitator, the controllerwould receive request from merchants for the formation of groups. Themerchant would provide criteria for groups and group members. Thecontroller would then advertise the group, receive information frompotential group members, designate eligible candidates as group members,track the performance of the group, determine whether the group has metgoals, and otherwise perform the steps of the present invention. If agroup has met goals, then the controller could provide the group'sreward to the designated beneficiary, and receive reimbursement from themerchant. If a group has not met goals, then the controller wouldreceive from the merchant alternate options for the group to stillreceive its reward. The controller might take a fee from the merchantfor facilitating the group's formation and existence.

[0176] As described variously herein, goals may not be identical for allgroup members. For example, one member of a medical group might need toreceive twice-annual blood pressure checks, whereas another group membermight need to receive monthly blood-sugar checks.

[0177] A controller can send promotions to a group in exchange for agroup reward. In some embodiments, a group member, such as the groupleader, might receive a promotion from the controller and be instructedto show it to the rest of the group. Since the promotion is beingpresented to the group by the group leader, other group members may bemore likely to look at it and accept it.

[0178] One advantage of some embodiments of the present invention isthat groups may center on activities with high behavioral costs. Forexample, a car insurance company's expenses are significantly dependenton an insured person's driving behavior. If the person does not wearseat belts, drives over the speed limit, does not signal, weaves throughtraffic, drives while intoxicated, or does not properly maintain hiscar, then the insurance company's expenses for that person may besignificantly higher. Accordingly, a car insurance company may benefitfrom acting as a controller for a group of drivers, or by having anotherentity act as a controller for a group of drivers on the insurancecompany's behalf. The goal of the group may be to have, for example, anaggregate number of driving tickets below a certain threshold over theperiod of a year. If the goal is met, each driver might receive abenefit (e.g., a cash payment or lower insurance premiums).

[0179] Medical care may also have a high behavioral component. Healthinsurance and life insurance companies may save on expenses if insuredpeople got more exercise, had better diets, refrained from smoking,refrained from excessive drinking, followed their prescription regimens,got screenings and got regular physical check ups. Accordingly, healthcare providers and insurers have an incentive to motivate consumers toform groups in which they can encourage one another to healthierbehavior.

[0180] In some embodiments, a casino may act as a controller and giverewards to groups for gambling, in aggregate, more than a thresholdamount, or for gambling, in aggregate, more than a certain minimumamount of time. Rewards may include better odds either during or afterplay.

[0181] While the best mode for carrying out the invention has beendescribed in detail, those familiar with the art to which the inventionrelates will recognize various alternative designs and embodiments forpracticing the invention. These alternative embodiments are within thescope of the present invention. Accordingly, the scope of the presentinvention embodies the scope of the claims appended hereto.

We claim:
 1. A method comprising: transmitting an offer for a creditcard, the offer for the credit card comprising: an offer for a firstreward to be provided to at least one consumer of a plurality ofconsumers in exchange for each consumer of the plurality of consumersaccepting a respective credit card, in which the first reward comprisesa first monetary amount; an offer for a second reward in exchange forthe plurality of consumers transferring at least a predeterminedaggregate amount of funds to the respective credit cards; and an offerfor a third reward in exchange for each consumer of the plurality ofconsumers making a respective minimum payment within a firstpredetermined period of time.
 2. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: receiving from each consumer of the plurality of consumersan identifier that identifies the plurality of consumers; receiving fromeach consumer of the plurality of consumers a password that isassociated with the plurality of consumers; and receiving from eachconsumer of the plurality of consumers a respective request for a creditcard.
 3. The method of claim 2, in which the plurality of consumersdetermines the identifier based on a vote.
 4. The method of claim 2, inwhich the plurality of consumers determines the password based on avote.
 5. The method of claim 2, in which at least one of the respectiverequests is received via a website.
 6. The method of claim 2, in whichat least one of the respective requests is received via an email.
 7. Themethod of claim 2, in which at least one of the respective requests isreceived via a telephone connection.
 8. The method of claim 2, in whichat least one of the respective requests is received via a kiosk.
 9. Themethod of claim 2, in which at least one of the respective requests isreceived via a slot machine.
 10. The method of claim 2, in which atleast one of the respective requests is received via postal mail. 11.The method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving from a firstconsumer of the plurality of consumers an identifier that identifies theplurality of consumers; receiving an indication of a request by thefirst consumer for the credit card, the request including dataassociated with the first consumer; determining whether the firstconsumer is eligible for the credit card based on the data; andproviding the credit card to the first consumer if the first consumer iseligible.
 12. The method of claim 1, further comprising: in which theoffer for the credit card further comprises: an offer for a fourthreward in exchange for each consumer of the plurality of consumerscharging at least a predetermined minimum charge amount within a secondpredetermined period of time.
 13. A method comprising: receiving arequest to accept a group, the group comprising a first peer and asecond peer, the request to accept the group indicating at least onecharacteristic shared by the first peer and the second peer, and therequest to accept the group indicating at least one reward preferred bythe first peer and the second peer, receiving a request by the firstpeer for a first credit card account; and receiving a request by thesecond peer for a second credit card account.
 14. A method comprising:transmitting an offer for a credit card account, the offer for thecredit card account comprising an offer to register a group, the offerto register the group indicating a condition that a first peer agree toattempt to communicate with a second peer at least once during a firstpredetermined period of time, and the offer to register the groupindicating at least one reward to be provided to the group in exchangefor at least the first peer signing up for the credit card account. 15.The method of claim 14, further comprising: receiving an indication of arequest by the first peer to sign up for the credit card account;registering the group, the group comprising the first peer and thesecond peer; and providing the at least one reward to the group.
 16. Amethod comprising: identifying a first account that is associated with afirst account holder; determining information corresponding to the firstaccount, in which the information comprises transaction data;determining whether a second credit card account is eligible for areward based on the information corresponding to the first credit cardaccount and at least one predetermined obligation, in which the secondcredit card account is associated with a second account holder,identifying at least one term associated with the second credit cardaccount; and adjusting the at least one term if the second credit cardaccount is eligible for the reward.
 17. The method of claim 16, in whichthe at least one predetermined obligation comprises a predeterminednumber of purchases.
 18. The method of claim 16, in which the at leastone predetermined obligation comprises a predetermined balance amount.19. The method of claim 16, in which the at least one predeterminedobligation comprises a predetermined number of late payments.
 20. Themethod of claim 16, in which the at least one predetermined obligationcomprises a predetermined number of insurance claims.
 21. The method ofclaim 16, in which the at least one predetermined obligation comprises apredetermined insurance claim amount.
 22. The method of claim 16, inwhich the at least one predetermined obligation comprises an amountcorresponding to a predetermined percentage of a balance amount.
 23. Themethod of claim 16, in which the at least one predetermined obligationcomprises a number corresponding to a predetermined percentage of anumber of purchases.
 24. The method of claim 16, in which the at leastone predetermined obligation comprises a number corresponding to apredetermined percentage of a number of claims.
 25. The method of claim16, in which the at least one predetermined obligation comprises anamount corresponding to a predetermined percentage of an insurance claimamount.
 26. The method of claim 16, in which the at least onepredetermined obligation comprises a number corresponding to apredetermined percentage of a number of late payments.
 27. The method ofclaim 16, in which the at least one predetermined obligation comprises apredetermined number of traffic violations.
 28. The method of claim 16,in which the at least one predetermined obligation comprises apredetermined number of uses of alcohol.
 29. The method of claim 16, inwhich the at least one predetermined obligation comprises apredetermined number of uses of tobacco.
 30. The method of claim 16, inwhich the at least one predetermined obligation comprises a numbercorresponding to a predetermined percentage of a number of trafficviolations.
 31. The method of claim 16, in which the at least onepredetermined obligation comprises a number corresponding to apredetermined percentage of a number of uses of alcohol.
 32. The methodof claim 16, in which the at least one predetermined obligationcomprises a number corresponding to a predetermined percentage of anumber of uses of tobacco.
 33. The method of claim 16, in which the atleast one predetermined obligation comprises a predetermined number ofphysical examinations.
 34. The method of claim 16, in which the at leastone predetermined obligation comprises a predetermined number ofgambling sessions.
 35. The method of claim 16, in which the at least onepredetermined obligation comprises a predetermined number of plays of aslot machine.
 36. The method of claim 16, in which the at least onepredetermined obligation comprises a predetermined number of plays of atable game.
 37. The method of claim 16, in which the at least onepredetermined obligation comprises a predetermined amount wagered. 38.The method of claim 16, in which the at least one predeterminedobligation comprises a predetermined amount wagered at a slot machine.39. The method of claim 16, in which the at least one predeterminedobligation comprises a predetermined amount wagered at a table game. 40.The method of claim 16, in which the at least one predeterminedobligation comprises a number corresponding to a predeterminedpercentage of a number of gambling sessions.
 41. The method of claim 16,in which the at least one predetermined obligation comprises a numbercorresponding to a predetermined percentage of a number of plays of aslot machine.
 42. The method of claim 16, in which the at least onepredetermined obligation comprises a number corresponding to apredetermined percentage of a number of plays of a table game.
 43. Themethod of claim 16, in which the at least one predetermined obligationcomprises an amount corresponding to a predetermined percentage of anamount wagered.
 44. The method of claim 16, in which the at least onepredetermined obligation comprises an amount corresponding to apredetermined percentage of a amount wagered at a slot machine.
 45. Themethod of claim 16, in which the at least one predetermined obligationcomprises an amount corresponding to a predetermined percentage of anamount wagered at a table game.
 46. A method comprising: receiving arequest to form a group comprising a plurality of peers, in which eachpeer of the plurality of peers has agreed to attempt to communicate withat least one other peer of the plurality of peers during a predeterminedperiod of time; and receiving a request from one peer of the pluralityof peers to open a financial account.
 47. A method comprising: receivinga request to form a group, the group comprising a first peer and asecond peer, the request to register the group indicating a respectiveagreement by each of the first peer and the second peer to abstain fromat least one behavior; receiving a request by the first peer for aninsurance account, the insurance account being associated with a premiumamount; receiving first behavior data corresponding to the first peer;receiving second behavior data corresponding to the second peer;determining whether the group has abstained from the at least onebehavior based on the first behavior data and the second behavior data;and decreasing the premium amount if the group has abstained from the atleast one behavior.
 48. The method of claim L, in which the at least onebehavior includes at least one of: consuming alcohol, using tobacco, andillegally operating a motor vehicle.
 49. The method of claim 48, inwhich illegally operating a motor vehicle comprises operating a motorvehicle at a speed in excess of a speed limit.
 50. The method of claim48, in which illegally operating a motor vehicle comprises operating amotor vehicle under influence of alcohol.